-four arrested
Bandits pounced on a Mahaica businessman on Saturday night, beating and robbing him of $3M. Later that night the police arrested four persons, including a woman in connection with the robbery, sources say.
Samdeo Singh, the owner of S & S Supermarket was on his way to his Good Hope, Mahaica home when the incident occurred at about 8 pm on Saturday. He, his wife and his three-year-old son were in their car about one lot away from their home, when another vehicle pulled up in front of him, the still-shaken man recounted. He said that the car stopped and turned across the road, preventing him from passing.
Singh told this newspaper that two men rushed out and held him at gunpoint in a two-minute ordeal. They both wore handkerchiefs across the lower portion of their faces and one was armed with a “short gun” and the other with the “long gun”, he stated.
The taller of the two demanded that he “pass the bag” but he refused, the businessman related. He said that he held on to the bag while the bandit grabbed at it. The bandit eventually pulled it out of his grip. Singh said that the bag contained $3M representing the week’s sales and which he had intended to use to pay suppliers for goods this week.
The businessman said that the bandits then rushed back to their Carina in which another man was waiting but then returned and demanded that he turn off his vehicle’s engine and gave them the keys.
He said that he fought the gunman but his key ring on which there were also keys to his home and business was taken away. During the ordeal, he was gun-butted several times. At the same time, according to Singh, the other bandit said that they were going to take his son and grabbed at the boy. However, his wife held on to him.
After the bandit got the keys, they rushed back to the car and sped away. An alarm was raised and Singh went to the Mahaica Police station to report the matter. He said he was placed in the police patrol vehicle and driven to Hope but that was all the police at that station did. The upset man said after spending an hour waiting at the station, his shirt covered in blood, relatives took him for treatment and then to the Cove and John Police station.
He said that ranks there took “immediate action” and at about 11pm on Saturday, the silver-gray Carina was found at Ann’s Grove. Three men along with a woman – who is the owner of the car, were arrested and are in custody at Cove and John, he stated. An identification parade is expected to be done today. However, the money was not recovered.
Singh told this newspaper that his wife and son were very traumatized by the incident. He noted that it is the first time he was the victim of such a robbery though his store was broken and entered before.
Police, in a slightly differing account of the incident said in a press release, that Singh was attacked and robbed by two men, one of whom was armed with a handgun.
Police investigations revealed that Singh was on his way home in his motor car, when a car that was travelling in front of him along the Good Hope Community Centre dam stopped and blocked his path. The two men exited the vehicle and held him at gunpoint and took away $2.5M, US$500 and his cell phone and escaped in their vehicle, the statement said. It made no mention of any arrests.
