A man suspected of being one of two gunmen who invaded a house at Ruby Backdam, East Bank Essequibo (EBE) last Friday was yesterday found floating in a nearby trench.
Divisional Commander Ian Amsterdam told Stabroek News last evening that investigators believe that the so far unidentified man either died by drowning or as a result of some injury he might have sustained either during or after the armed attack.
Police said in a press release that the decomposed body of a so far unidentified man ofAfrican-Guyanese ethnicity was found at about 0830 hours at Good Hope Backdam, West Coast Demerara. A trench separates Good Hope Backdam from Ruby Backdam.
The deceased, the release said is about 5’ 6” in height, fair complexioned, appears to be in his mid- thirties, and was clad in a multi- coloured jersey and shorts. He has a tattoo “God Bless” on his upper right arm.
The body is at the Ezekiel Funeral Parlour at Best, Vreed-en-Hoop, WCD.
The release stated that a cell phone that was stolen during an armed robbery recently at Ruby Backdam, EBE, was found at the scene.
Amsterdam when contacted explained that the armed robbery at Ruby occurred around 11 pm last Friday. He said that a man, his wife and their son had just returned home from a wedding house in the area when the man heard his dogs barking in the back yard. Amsterdam said that upon checking the man was held up at gunpoint by one of two bandits who later entered the house.
He said that on entering the house the men demanded valuables and subsequently managed to escape with cash, jewellery and a cell phone.
According to Amsterdam, during the course of the robbery, the man’s son managed to escape and this resulted in one of the bandits discharging rounds at him as he fled.
According to Amsterdam, since earlier in the day a suspicious car was spotted in the area and it is suspected that the occupants were watching the family.
When the man’s son fled, an alarm was raised and a public-spirited citizen came out. The suspicious car which had two occupants inside drove off while the two bandits fled on foot into the backdam.
Amsterdam expressed the view that the man may have drowned while attempting to cross the trench which separates the two areas. He said that though the body is in a decomposed state there are what appear to be injuries to the side of his face. He said that while the body was found in the trench, police discovered the cellphone on a dam located alongside the trench.
So far police have been unable to apprehend anyone involved in the armed robbery.
Investigations are in progress.
