A teenage Rose Hall Town, Corentyne money changer was robbed of $1.5 million in cash yesterday morning by men who pretended that they wanted to convert a large amount of United States currency.
Following the attack, two men have been held by the police, while a car suspected to have been used in the crime has since been impounded.
The money changer, Shazam Mohamed, 16, told Sunday Stabroek that around 07:30 hrs yesterday a white car, PYY 1231, suddenly stopped in front of him in Rose Hall Town, Corentyne, where most of the money changers would usually operate.
According to him, there was a driver and a passenger and the passenger indicated that he wanted to change US$2,000 and asked if Mohamed could enter the car for privacy reasons. The young man said he complied after which the passenger indicated that he wanted to change US$5,000.
However, Mohamed did not have the required amount on him and as a result phoned his father, also a money changer, to bring $1 million (Guyana currency). At the time Mohamed had $500,000 in his possession.
After collecting the money from his father, the youth then handed over $1.5 million to the men for them to check after which the money was handed back to him and the car sped off with him inside as the passenger claimed that they now had to go to his father to collect the US currency.
However, Mohamed claimed that the men then drove to a secluded area along the Corentyne Highway (Number 19 Public Road), where the robbery took place.
“The passenger one go and stand up at the back of the car (outside) and the driver ask me how much money left and I told him I don’t have any but he reached over and tried to scramble the money.”
According to Mohamed, after he refused and pushed the driver’s hands away, the man then pulled a gun and pointed it towards him before instructing him to exit the vehicle and to run.
Mohamed said the passenger who was seemingly standing guard outside began banging on the car telling the driver “leh we kill he,” causing Mohamed to exit the vehicle and run as instructed. The passenger reentered the vehicle, which then sped off in the direction of New Amsterdam.
Mohamed then stopped a car and rushed home, where he informed his father of what had transpired after which a police report was made.
