Police held three men after a Soesdyke family was robbed yesterday morning of cash and jewellery.
Alita Bacchus told Stabroek News that she was awakened by the sound of glass breaking and thought that her husband had left the freezer in their shop on, causing the bottles to break. She said she roused him to make a check and as Wilson Bacchus proceeded to the refrigerator in the kitchen first, the sound of breaking louvre windows at the back of the house alerted him to the robbers.
By the time Wilson shouted “thief” the men had already entered the house and fired a shot at him. They then instructed him to “shut up and don’t holler,” as they pushed him into the living room and ordered him to lie on the ground, Alita said. The woman said she had been fast on her husband’s heels when he left the bedroom but retreated when she realised what was happening. She said her fear caused her to shake and as she attempted to lock the bedroom door her hands could not locate the keyhole so she simply slumped back against the door.
Meanwhile, the bandits had spotted the couple’s 14-year-old son Anthony who was coming out of his room on hearing his father’s screams and pulled him into the living room and ordered him to lie on the ground. Alita said she heard the gunmen instruct her husband to order her out of the bedroom and on hearing them give him a final warning she came out. They then threw a covering over the couple and one of them marched Anthony into his room and ordered him to hand over the valuables. The other gunman proceeded to ransack the Bacchus’s bedroom.
By this time, Wilson had managed to slip out the front door of the single story house unnoticed and he headed over to the neighbours to seek help. When the gunmen realised that Wilson had disappeared Alita told them that he had gone into the shop. When they could not locate him they beat her and left the house shortly after.
Police from the Soesdyke station arrived on the scene minutes after the gunmen had escaped. Neighbours who had heard the gunshot had alerted them to the robbery. “They were very prompt,” Alita recalled, adding that her neighbours had wanted to come to her assistance but were scared away by the gunshot. The woman said too when the bandits left Anthony was still in shock and she literally had to drag him into the bedroom and lock the door for fear that that they would return.
Alita also said she could not determine her losses as police had told them not to touch anything in the bedroom until they had dusted for fingerprints and looked for other clues. This is to be done today. She also said following some police investigations she recovered an offering basket that held her church’s tithes and offering.
Alita said she no longer feels safe in her home and that her relatives and friends have converged on the family to comfort and support them.
A police release last evening said that Wilson Bacchus immediately reported the matter and this allowed the police to nab the three men in the village. One was found with three rounds of ammo and some jewellery and cash believed to be booty from the robbery were retrieved. (Melissa Charles)
