Two taxi drivers were on Monday night carjacked by bandits who posed as customers.
One of the cars has since been recovered after the bandits attempted to escape a roadblock.
The attacks took place at Zeelugt New Scheme, East Bank Essequibo (EBE) and Cornelia Ida New Scheme, West Coast Demerara (WCD), where Harry Narine and Jailall Mahadeo were robbed of their cars and other valuables.
In both cases, four men, operating in pairs, carried out the attack. They are suspected to be part of a gang.
According to a police statement, Narine, 28, was at a taxi base on the Zeelugt Public Road, where he was approached by two men, who requested to be taken to the community’s New Scheme.
“The victim agreed and proceeded with the men to the location in his Toyota Premio PSS 9929 [and] upon arrival, one of the suspects drew a handgun, ordered him out of the vehicle of which they took possession and fled,” the police said.
Contacted by this newspaper yesterday, Narine said at the time of the robbery, he was the only driver available at the base.
He explained that he was seated in his car when he was approached by the two men, who exited a minibus and requested to be taken to the Zeelugt New Scheme. “Them come in the car and one of them sit down in front and the other one went to the back, like behind me. They tell me they going in the New Scheme and I see the one in front went texting, then I hear he say that they ain’t really know where exactly they going but they texting the person for directions but ain’t get no response,” Narine explained.
He further related that the men ordered that he drive to the end of a street. However, upon arrival, they requested that he turn around and head back in the direction they came from, suggesting that they had already passed their destination.
At this point, Narine said he saw two men walking on the road and his passengers then requested that they stop in front of the men. “Is stop I stop and one of them… pull me out the vehicle and the other one put a gun to me head and tell me don’t look up and they carry me at the street corner and put me to sit down and give me one stamp and I fall over…after that they get away with the car,” he said.
Narine said the men also escaped with his cell phone, a quantity of cash, his ID card and driver licence, which were in the car.
Meanwhile, the other attack took place around 10.30 pm at Cornelia Ida New Scheme, WCD, where Mahadeo, 30, was robbed of motor car PNN 1952, in a similar manner.
Investigations, the police said, revealed that Mahadeo was at a taxi base, located at De Willem Public Road, when he was approached by two men, who requested to be taken to Cornelia Ida’s New Scheme.
Upon arrival, the police said, Mahadeo was robbed of his vehicle.
However, during their bid to escape, the suspects encountered a roadblock in front the Den Amstel Police station and turned around in an effort to escape. Police ranks gave chase and the suspects abandoned the vehicle and fled into some nearby bushes.
“The suspects, in making their escape with motor car PNN 1952, encountered a police roadblock in front of the Den Amstel Police Station and immediately changed direction. This caught the attention of the vigilant ranks who in turn pursued. Shortly after, the suspects abandoned the vehicle and fled into some nearby bushes and escaped,” the police said.
