Three men including a former employee of Channel Nine were arrested yesterday following another early morning break-in at the Mandela Avenue location and police have managed to recover some of the items stolen in the last few months.
An employee of the television station told Stabroek News yesterday that around 4:30 am the thieves broke into the editing suite but a vigilant security guard confronted one of them as they were escaping.
During the scuffle, the security cameras picked up a clear image of the thief, who was later identified as a former security guard and dog handler. The thief and his accomplice escaped by jumping a nearby fence with the stolen booty. A computer monitor was left behind.
The employee explained to this newspaper that because he handled the pit bulls that guarded the location, the animals knew him so he was able to carry out the crime easily. He was also familiar with the security set up, enabling him to easily avoid detection.
In yesterday’s incident the thieves made off with a back up drive and computer accessories including speakers.
Hours after the robbery, reports are that the 18-year-old former employee was picked up at his East La Penitence where some of the stolen items inclusive of two cameras were found.
During questioning others were identified and they too were arrested before being taken to the East La Penitence Police Station.
Stabroek News was told that at the station, the teen denied knowing an employee who had turned up to identify some of the stolen equipment.
Last week, thieves broke into the station and removed important pieces of equipment that caused a nine-hour delay in transmission.
Yesterday’s break-in was the tenth for the year.
