Two men, known to the police as serial robbers, were caught early yesterday morning after they robbed the Wild Caught Fresh Fish Depot at the Meadow Bank Wharf, Ruimveldt, East Bank Demerara.
One of the men was shot in both his legs by police, who responded swiftly to a report of the robbery, which occurred around 12.45am. Up to yesterday afternoon, he was admitted as a patient at the Georgetown Public Hospital (GPH) under police guard.
A Guyana Police Force statement said the two men carried out the attack with the help of another, who managed to escape.
According to the police, the three men, one of whom was armed with a handgun, stormed the Wild Caught Fresh Fish Depot and held the supervisor, Shane Robin, at gunpoint. They carted off an undisclosed amount of cash and other electronics, including a DVR and radio set.
The statement added that a public-spirited citizen, who witnessed the robbery, summoned the police, who responded within minutes and confronted the men in front the depot.
The statement further said that during the confrontation one of the unarmed suspects was shot to both legs and the other with the firearm ran back into the depot and hid himself in the ceiling. He was extracted shortly after with an unlicensed 9mm pistol with eight live rounds.
Robin was gun-butted to his head during the attack, police said, and he was treated at the GPH and discharged.
Crime Chief Wendell Blanhum yesterday told Stabroek News that all efforts are being made to have the third suspect apprehended. He also said the two men who were arrested are known to the police as serial robbers. He said one of the men was previously charged with armed robbery and was remanded to prison. However, he was released on High Court bail.
Blanhum said that the uninjured prisoner was placed on several identification parades yesterday and he was positively identified by five eyewitnesses as the suspect in five gun-related offences. He will also be placed on additional ID parades soon, he added.
When Stabroek News visited the depot yesterday, the business was open as per normal.
A staff member, Lydia Basdeo, recalled receiving a call from her colleague, Robin, early yesterday morning. “He call me and tell me about the robbery and I left home right away and come here,” she said.
Basdeo recounted that when she arrived, she was greeted by the presence of a large number of police officers. “The bandit that get shoot went lay down in a corner in the store and they did still trying to get the one who did hiding in the ceiling,” she related.
Basdeo said based on what she was told, the men gained entry into the building through a window in the upper flat of the building. Their security guard, she noted, was unaware of what was transpiring until other persons in the compound raised an alarm. “People in the compound see them and tell Shane that some men in the building and he tell the security to call the police,” she said, while adding, “Like one of them hear when Shane talk about calling police and they tek the gun and lash Shane in he head and put he to kneel down.”
Shortly after, the men saw the police approaching and attempted to escape. (Sharda Bacchus)
The Wild Caught Fresh Fish Depot, located at Meadow Bank Wharf, Ruimveldt, East Bank Demerara, which was attacked early yesterday morning.
A window, located in the washroom area of the upper flat of the building, which the men used to gain entry into the building.
