The quiet of Canal No. 1 Polder, West Bank Demerara, was shattered by gunshots on Wednesday evening when a businessman was shot and robbed in an attack carried out by two bandits, who escaped with his car and an undisclosed amount of cash.
Businessman Abdul Quadir Nazir, 26, was resting at home yesterday after being discharged from the hospital where he was taken for treatment. Mechanic Mark Crandon, who was with Nazir in his car when the attack occurred, managed to flee from the car and run for cover during the attack.
At Nazir’s residence yesterday, relatives refused to comment on the attack.
According to a police statement, Nazir and Crandon, who also lives in Canal No. 1 Polder, were in the car in front of the businessman’s residence at about 8:20PM when the bandits pulled up in a car. A neighbour said the men were masked although police did not.
Police said one man exited and proceeded to discharge rounds at Nazir, hitting him to his left side, before taking him out of his vehicle.
The armed man along with an accomplice then drove away Nazir’s vehicle, but not before Crandon managed to jump out of the car after struggling with one of the men.
The stolen car was subsequently discovered intact at Nismes, West Bank Demerara.
Nazir has since been treated at the hospital and has been discharged.
Stabroek News was told that the businessman lost thousands of dollars in foreign currency in the attack.
A security guard who was on duty near to Nazir’s home told Stabroek News that earlier in the evening he observed two strange men lurking in the area but he did not get to clearly identify the persons since the street light was not working properly.
The guard said also attempted to make contact with the policing group in the area but his efforts were unsuccessful.
The guard recalled that he was listening to his radio when he heard of a fire at the Two Brothers Gas Station, which prompted him to venture out on the road in an attempt to see whether he would be able to view the fire. It was then that he observed two cars.
He said that there was a series of gunshots that prompted him to run for cover and within seconds he observed a man running towards Nazir’s car.
About three minutes later, the man said that he went out and discovered the injured Nazir, who was later rushed to the West Demerara Regional Hospital. Meanwhile, a neighbour said he observed the robbery from his home.
He said the robbers arrived in two cars, which they used to box Nazir in.
The neighbour said after the shooting subsided he called out for Nazir but didn’t get an answer. He later saw the victim’s car passing his house before stopping under a large tree a few blocks away on the road.
He then saw someone exit the car and throw out an object looking like a bag. The car was then turned in a position to block the road while someone else recovered the object which was thrown out.
The neighbour who later transported the injured Nazir to the hospital said that he learnt that the businessman was being tracked by the two cars while travelilng home that evening but the businessman’s suspicions were not raised.
After the gunshots, another resident recalled seeing Crandon running into their yard before throwing himself in a nearby gutter in an attempt to hide.
The resident said Crandon told them that Nazir was about to give him a ride home when they were attacked by the bandits.
The terrorised Crandon, who had bruises and blood about his body, told the resident that he managed to disarm the bandit and then ran for cover.
The resident said that the mechanic disclosed that although the bandits were masked, they are suspected to be two men from Bagotville area.
