As investigations continue into the over $1M robbery of a pastor’s family at Patentia, West Bank Demerara (WBD) on Thursday night, police have not yet held anyone.
Police sources told Stabroek News that the bandits relieved the family of the pastor, who was identified as F. Satnarine, of $270,000 in cash and about $1M in jewellery before escaping by river.
This newspaper was told too that following reports of men in the area on Saturday, searches were carried out at Reinstein on the West Demerara, a community not far from Patentia.
According to reports, at about 8:45 pm on Thursday night about five bandits, some of whom bore handguns and rifles, cut the gates to the family’s Patentia home which is located behind their church and broke some padlocks on the door. The gunmen reportedly tied up the family’s house help, who was in the bottom flat before proceeding upstairs where the pastor’s wife was confronted and they demanded money and jewellery.
A resident had told Stabroek News that after the attack, as the bandits were about to leave, a villager who was walking on the street at the time was told to lie flat on the road as the men approached the sea dam where it is believed that a boat was waiting for them.
Recently another family at Stanleytown, WBD was robbed of over $1M in cash and jewellery in a similar manner, with the bandits escaping by boat along the Demerara River.