A Kaneville, East Bank Demerara (EBD) businessman was last night in a critical condition at the Georgetown Public Hospital (GPHC) after he was shot during a robbery at his home.
According to reports, businessman Majeed Khan, 30, was shot in the region of his heart by one of five men who attacked his home last evening shortly after 7 pm. The man’s wife Pamela Gordon, who sustained injuries to the head and other parts of her body during the attack told Stabroek News at the GPHC that she was at the front of the family’s home at Lot 279, Kaneville when she noticed two men walking into her yard.
She said that one of the men told her not to move but she responded by crying out for ‘thief’ as she frantically attempted to hide. She said that the men attacked her while she was at the front of the family’s home where she and her husband operate a shop.
The woman noted that the two men were joined by three others and she observed three of the men carrying guns while their accomplices carried knives. She said that three of the men dragged her into her home and physically assaulted her as they asked for “the money and gold”. She said that she told the men that there was some money in the shop. “They keep asking for money and gold and one cuff me and keep making demands”.
Gordon noted that her husband meantime was being assaulted by two of the men who questioned him too about money and gold. According to her, he had moments earlier returned from transacting business on the road. She said that the men carted off approximately $150,000 in cash which represented the day’s sales. Gordon added that one of the men took her handbag which contained personal documents including her ID card and her mobile phone.
She said that their three children were terrified by the entire ordeal which lasted some 15-20 minutes, adding that one of the men, “hold on pon my daughter and kept asking for gold and money”. She said that the men, who were all masked, escaped via the family’s backyard. She said that it was the first time the family was attacked by bandits.
Khan, who was shot in the right side of his chest, was picked up in a pool of blood and rushed to the Diamond Diagnostic Centre following the attack.
His father, Yusuf Khan, related that he received a call around 7:30, the person on the other end stated that his son had been shot and that he was at the hospital. He said he immediately headed for the medical institution at Diamond where staff attended to his son.
The injured man was transferred to the GPHC shortly after 8 pm as neighbours converged on the scene. At Kaneville last evening, neighbours were still in a state of shock as others expressed anger at the ordeal. The man’s brother told this newspaper that a neighbour recalled seeing more than one person running through Khan’s backyard and heading for a trench. He said this information was later relayed to the police. It was noted that the men fired two shots in the air as they escaped
Another of Khan’s neighbours was critical of the police’s response to the scene. She said that after she heard cries for help from Khan’s home, she realized that the family was being robbed and she immediately dialled 911.
She said that the number rang out during each attempt and according to her, “the police only know what happen when this man wife in all she injury go to Grove station”. She said that the police arrived at the scene more than an hour after the incident occurred.
Last night shortly after 10, the injured Khan was being prepared for surgery, and his wife expressed hope that he would recover from his injuries soon. His condition was listed as critical but stable.
