(Trinidad Express) A Chinese businesswoman was shot and killed by bandits who robbed her restaurant and bar in Cunupia on Thursday night.
Her husband was also shot, and was last night listed in critical condition at hospital.
Wife Wu Xiu Hua, 60, was pronounced dead at the Chaguanas Health Centre, while her husband Yang Jian Hua, is detained at the Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex in Mount Hope.
He has a bullet lodged in the neck and was expected to be transferred to the Port of Spain General Hospital for surgery.
Police said around 9.45 p.m, bandits entered the couple’s businessplace —Tiger Chinese Restaurant and Bar—at 30 Southern Main Road and announced a hold-up.
There were no customers in the restaurant at the time. The robbers fired several shots at the couple and stole a laptop and cash before escaping.
Wu Xiu Hua was shot in the chest, while Yang Jian Hua was shot in the neck.
Police said the couple was found by their daughter, Gu Yan You, who was on the first floor on the property where the family lived.
The daughter told police she heard three explosions.
Mary-Ann Ragbarsingh, a receptionist at Marianne’s Guest House, located near the restaurant, said she had spoken to the deceased before the shooting.
Ragbarsingh said, ‘I called and asked her to bring a pack of cigarettes for me and the Chinese lady said okay. Usually she would bring whatever we order right away. When she didn’t turn up I called and I got no answer. I called again ten minutes later and a policewoman answered the phone and said the people in the restaurant were shot.”
Police said there were no suspects in the case.
However, the Express was told that police were seeking to obtain the video footage from the security cameras at the guest house, hoping to find images of the killers.
Businesspersons along the Southern Main Road said the couple had lived in the area for three years.
Auto electrician Rishi Harrilal said of them, “They could hardly speak English. But they were so nice. Why didn’t they (robbers) just rob them and go?”
Another guesthouse receptionist, Meena Gangasingh, said four houses were broken into in the area last week.
Gangasingh said she was scared for her life.
“I am not taking anything for granted. I am afraid to go to the door without someone with me,” she said.
The Express was told that the couple also had a son operating another restaurant in Tobago.
