How Could You?Hall of Shame-Belize-Ayana Bennett case-Child Death UPDATED

This will be an archive of heinous actions by those involved in child welfare, foster care and adoption. We forewarn you that these are deeply disturbing stories that may involve sex abuse, murder, kidnapping and other horrendous actions.

From Spanish Lookout, Cayo District, Belize, “In a case that has shocked Belize and sparked a national conversation about child protection, Marvin Denver Plett, 43, and Lena Plett, 39, from the Spanish Lookout community in the Cayo District, have been charged with manslaughter in connection with the tragic death of four-year-old Ayana Bennett (Moody), a foster child who had been placed in their care.

Little Ayana Bennett, known as Ayana Moody, and her 2-year-old sister had reportedly been placed in the custody of the Department of Human Services in August and had been taken into the Plett home on September 7 of this year, but she was reportedly found dead by her foster mother at about 3:30 a.m. on Friday, November 17. An examination of the injuries to her bruised body triggered a serious police inquiry into the possibility that her death was the result of child abuse.

On Tuesday, November 21, police informed reporters that a post-mortem examination of the child’s body, which had been done at the Belize Medical College, had revealed that her death was the result of blunt force trauma. “The pathologist today conducted a postmortem examination on the body of the child and certified that she died from multiple trauma, which would indicate that she was beaten severely. And that beating was what caused her death,” noted Commissioner of Police, Chester Williams.

Both of the child’s foster parents had admitted to having physically disciplined the child with a belt during a homeschooling lesson they were having. Their admission, along with other evidence, had been placed in a file that was forwarded to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), so that she could decide what charges could or would be brought against the couple.

“The result of that has been forwarded to the DPP, and we will now await further instructions from her as it relates to any possible further charges. I don’t know if a belt would cause that amount of force, as the doctor had prescribed, following the postmortem examination,” Williams had explained.

Williams made reference to Section 38 of the Criminal Code of Belize’s Constitution, which permits parents to chastise their kids, but prohibits any type of excessive physical punishment. He further noted that, in this particular case, the child’s foster parents could be held accountable for any brutal beating that might have caused her death. “It might not be a charge of murder, but at the very least, manslaughter,” Williams had said.

In a San Ignacio court on Tuesday, the couple was initially charged with aggravated assault—a charge which has now been upgraded, as mentioned earlier, to manslaughter.

On November 19, the chairman of the Spanish Lookout community, Harry Letkeman, released a statement affirming the community’s commitment to Christian values and the protection of all children, and expressing deep condolences for the unexplained loss.

“Our hearts are collectively broken, and we express our sadness at her passing and share in the grief of her biological parents and family. For us, it is part of our Christian duty to care for and protect the most vulnerable of our Belize society,” stated the release.

The statement described the collective grief and shock permeating Spanish Lookout and noted, “As a community, we look to the authorities to continue its investigation and establish the cause of Ayana’s sudden death. We pledge our full support to the investigation process.”

Letkeman, during an interview, remarked, “Most parents in Spanish Lookout are very good parents, you know, raising their children well, and I had never heard of anybody losing a child just in their sleep. Then we were made to understand that perhaps there had been some marks on her body, and then everybody’s hearts just sank. I think we all feel very deeply saddened, and I would like to take the opportunity to apologize to her mother and the country for this. It should never happen, you know, when a child is placed in the care of adults and the child is completely innocent, it cannot defend itself, so it’s completely at the mercy of the adults around it.”

However, Letkeman had indicated he had not expected any punitive action to be taken against the foster parents, whom he describes as a well-respected and honest family in the community. Instead, he said that he hoped that one day the family will be able to tell their side of the story.

Notably, the child, who reportedly lived in a Southside neighborhood in Belize City, had been placed in the foster home as part of a short-term arrangement by the Department of Human Services, which was reportedly seeking to provide little Ayana Bennett and her sister with a safer environment. It has been reported that five years ago, the little girl’s older sister, Etana, had been fatally wounded while sleeping in her home by a bullet believed to have been fired by a warring gang member.

Prime Minister Hon. John Briceño also expressed his sorrow and indignation, stating, “My heart broke. How can a human being do something like this to a child?” The Prime Minister went on to call for justice, stating that if it were up to him, the charge would be murder.

In light of questions that have surfaced about the types of decisions which led to the placement of Bennett in the Plett home, the Minister of Human Development, Hon. Dolores Balderamos-García, who refrained from commenting directly about the process, assured the public that the Ministry plans to take appropriate measures in response to what has occurred. “I want to assure the public that our ministry will leave no stone unturned in terms of the types of responses that we have to give. But I must say something to tell you that there was no red flag or concern that we had in terms of the placement of the child,” she stated.”

 

Police charge foster parents for the death of child in Spanish Lookout
[Amandala 10/26/23 by Kristen Ku]

REFORM Puzzle Piece

Update: “The Spanish Lookout couple charged in connection with the death of four-year-old Ayana Bennet, was to see their trial start today before the High Court in Belmopan. It is a case that stems from a tragic incident in November 2023 where Ayana was in the care of the Pletts as a foster child and passed away. The child died after sustaining injuries that a post-mortem examination later determined were caused by blunt force trauma. Investigators alleged that the child had been struck with a belt after failing to correctly identify a colour. At the time of the incident, a national conversation was prompted over Belize’s foster care system and the safeguards in place to protect vulnerable children. In the aftermath of the tragedy, government officials pledged to review and strengthen procedures governing the screening and monitoring of foster parents. Speaking with the media at the time, in December 2023, was the then Minister of Human Development, Dolores Balderamos Garcia.

Dolores Baldermos Garcia, Sr. Minister of State in the Office of the Prime Minister of Belize: “You know it’s hard to talk about but I will tell you that the police have custody of the case now. The DPP made her decision as to the charges and basically we don’t have much more of an update than that. I can tell you though that we have been within my ministry reviewing all our protocols as to how we place children in foster care. And we have taken into account that many times for foster care, it’s good to have what you call an ethnically appropriate or friendly placement of children, you know? Mind you, that is not taking away from the entire Mennonite community because they have been very good about reaching out. Just to repeat, there really were no red flags when those children were placed in emergency placement back in September and so it’s still extremely difficult to talk about.

I think as a country we’re still grieving in such a loss of such a precious innocent life you know. Let justice take its course but at the same time I want to give the public the assurance that our ministry will continue to do our best for the protection of children. You know we may have over four to five hundred children in placements all over the country. We have government facilities. We have private facilities that we work with. We have residential care facilities once you have more than eight children in your care, and you’re not the biological family, you must apply for a license to operate a residential care facility. And so we have many facilities throughout the country. And there is an inspector of social service institutions and that person goes out and makes sure.”

Following the results of the post-mortem examination, the couple’s initial aggravated assault charge was upgraded to manslaughter. The decision then by the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions generated widespread public debate with some members of Ayana’s biological family calling for murder charges to be brought against the foster parents. Denver and Lena Plett appeared in court this morning, but were informed of an adjournment when attorney, Leeroy Banner, was delayed from attending today’s proceedings.”

Trial of Foster Parents Charged in Ayana Bennet’s Death Delayed

[Love FM 6/9/26]