An armed gang stormed a mining camp at 23 Miles Issano on Sunday and escaped with raw gold and an All Terrain Vehicle (ATV) after tying up miners, in the latest attack highlighting security concerns in the country’s gold fields.
Up to press time last evening, a roving police team was still hunting for the five-member gang and a senior police official said that the search would continue until they are captured.
According to police, Sunday’s attack occurred around 6:30pm, when five men, three of whom were armed with shotguns and the others with cutlasses, struck at the camp and discharged several rounds in the process. The owner of the dredge and five employees were at the camp at the time.
The owner, according to the police, hid himself, while the other miners were tied up by the bandits who proceeded to rob them.
They stole seven ounces of raw gold, a firearm, a quantity of ammunition, a radio set, an ATV and $100,000 cash.
Stabroek News was unable to contact the dredge owner, who was only identified as “Sammy.’ Although initial reports suggested that he was shot and was being treated at the Bartica Hospital, a police official said that no one was injured during the attack. The official said that the rounds discharged during the attack were fired in the air.
Meanwhile, the President of the Guyana Gold and Diamond Miners Association (GGMDA) Patrick Harding told this newspaper that it was miners who informed him about the attack. He said that attacks on mining camp continues to be a concern for the GGDMA, which has continually raised concerns about the lack of security in the interior. “We are working with the police,” he said when asked what is being done to tackle this issue.
Harding added that even the police commissioner was approached.
He opined that monitoring the movements of people travelling into and leaving interior locations is the key. He said that the GGDMA’s desire is to find a way to identify these persons. He explained that previously anyone travelling into or leaving the interior were stopped at every landing or security checkpoint.
However, today, he noted, that system is not “fully enforced” although it is essential for security.
According to Harding, the GGDMA is bombarded with security complaints from miners every day. He said that it is awaiting a police report on the latest attack and will be following up with the police.
A ‘gold rush’ in the interior in recent years has seen an increase in armed attacks on miners and mining camps, while the police’s response has been hindered in part by the terrain and a lack of manpower.
In 2010, Crime Chief Seelall Persaud had told this newspaper that the geography of the area, the scattered population and inadequate communications made it difficult for police to tackle this issue.
In spite of this, police continue to conduct stop and search exercises, regularly patrol mining and logging communities and have been working closely with companies to try and bring the situation under control.
The last major gang to be dismantled was the Aranka gang in 2010. The five man gang targeted Brazilian mining camps in the Cuyuni area. The gang members were later arrested and charged with armed robbery.
