A suspected bandit was shot and killed, while another was wounded yesterday afternoon during an escape attempt after they allegedly robbed a woman at William Street, Campbellville.
The dead man has been identified as Randy Bowen, 22, of 184 Duncan Street, Campbellville.
His accomplice, who was shot in both legs, remained unidentified up to last evening. He was a patient under guard at the Georgetown Public Hospital (GPH).
The shooting occurred around 3.30 pm when the two men robbed the woman of her handbag and attempted to escape.
The woman raised an alarm and public-spirited persons chased after the bandits. During the chase, the bandits reportedly opened fired and a licensed firearm holder returned fire and Bowen was fatally wounded, while his accomplice was injured.
Contacted last evening, Commander of Region 4(A) Edgar Thomas confirmed the shooting.
“What we know [is] that it was somewhere in William Street. As a result, a person was robbed. What was taken from them I don’t have that facts at this moment. There someone actually, not the police, a citizen responded in the aid of the person, where the suspects start firing at persons who were pursing them. As a result, the two persons, were shot. One fatally shot, the other one injured,” Thomas explained.
He said up to last evening, the police were still trying to determine who fired the fatal shot.
“Who fired the fatal shot, at this time we don’t know. We are still investigating the matter…we don’t know where that shot came from that wounded that suspect, the fatal shot, we don’t know,” Thomas added.
When Stabroek News visited Williams Street, the police, who were present in their numbers, had already cordoned off the area. Bowen’s lifeless body was lying on the premises of Lot 16 William Street. His accomplice had already been transported to the hospital by that time.
A number of persons were present in the yard where Bowen’s body lay but they refused to comment on the shooting.
Relatives of Bowen, including his parents, later arrived at the scene and he was positively identified by his father. His mother fainted shortly after viewing his remains.
‘Gunshots ringing out’
Residents recalled hearing gunshots “ringing out”.
A resident, who wished not to be named, said she was asleep with her grandchild when she heard gunshots followed by a police siren. “I didn’t watch out because I didn’t want anything happen to me and I didn’t want to leave the child alone. When I come out after then I saw the crowd,” the woman said.
Meanwhile, a man said he was driving his daughter to lessons in the community when he heard what appeared to be gunshots. He dropped his daughter off and upon passing William Street he noticed a crowd.
At the scene, Andrew (only name given), who is a vendor at Stabroek Market, told reporters that he last saw his son, Bowen, around 3 pm yesterday.
“…He ask me for a thousand ($1,000). I give him and he left and went,” he said.
About an hour after, he said he received a call informing him that his son had been shot.
He said the details of what exactly led to Bowen’s demise remained unclear to the family since they were not provided with any information.
The man related that Bowen lived with his mother. He said his son previously worked with Guyana Water Incorporated but was fired about one year ago.
Andrew further explained that his son was charged twice in the past. “Same stealing and suh and he do about a three or four months remand in prison,” he said.
He said he tried to talk to him and to lead him to the right path but he didn’t listen. “A father do what a father supposed to do but there is only so much yuh could do. Yuh mek yuh children but yuh don’t mek they mind,” Andrew related.
“He is a alright person, he was a kind person at least to he sister and he mother, the only problem is the same stealing and following bad company but otherwise he is a good kid,” he said.
Stabroek News’ records revealed that Randy Bowen was charged twice in recent years.
In March 2018, he and another man were charged and remanded to prison for two attacks in which the victims were robbed of their phones. A few months later, he was again charged with attempting to rob a uniformed police officer.
