As the police investigation into Friday’s multi-million dollar robbery at Giftland’s GTT outlet widens, several suspects including a cleaner attached to the business have been arrested, over $2.6 million in cash recovered and the suspected getaway vehicle impounded.
Stabroek News was reliably informed that between Saturday, September 10 and Sunday, September 11, a team of ranks conducted an intelligence-led operation during which four suspects were arrested at various locations.
Among those currently in custody are a 26-year-old mechanic of Meadow Brook Gardens, Georgetown; a 25-year-old cleaner attached to the Giftland Mall GTT outlet; a 28-year-old Herstelling, East Bank Demerara resident and a 24-year-old labourer of A Field Sophia.
They were all questioned during which three of the suspects admitted to being involved in the crime. They provided investigators with details about their roles in the robbery. However, one of the suspects has denied any involvement in the crime, sources said.
Information reaching Stabroek News revealed that one of the suspects admitted that he was the driver of Toyota Raum motor vehicle, PKK 7701, which was used to commit the robbery. He also led the police to the vehicle which has since been lodged.
In order to hide the vehicle’s original features, this newspaper was told that the getaway driver told investigators that the colour of parts of the vehicle including its bonnet and roof was changed.
The second suspect who was arrested is the cleaner who is attached to the GTT Giftland outlet. Stabroek News was told that during questioning she told detectives that she was approached by one of the suspects some time ago and asked about the movement of cash from the business as well as the entrances, exits and the hours the business closes.
Another suspect took investigators to the Plaisance bus park where he made contact with a bus driver, who handed over $1.1m to the police.
Prior to his arrest, sources told Stabroek News that detectives contacted the suspect’s partner who indicated that she noticed that he bought home “a lot” of cash and enquired how he got it and he told her he was involved in the robbery.
Stabroek News understands that the suspects were paid sums varying from $500,000 to $1.1m for their parts in the robbery.
They also said that they used the money for various purposes. This newspaper was told that one of the suspects told the police that he purchased new clothing and covered his mother’s medical bill.
In one instance, one suspect passed on her share to a relative to keep while another gave a friend his. Police were able to locate both individuals and the amounts of $1.1M and $785,000 were recovered, respectively.
Armed bandits, who posed as security guards from a private security firm on Thursday night carried out the robbery during which they carted off $13,420,487 in currency and $6,015,524 in a cheque.
Police had confirmed that the robbery occurred around 9.45 pm. They said two of the perpetrators carried guns and were dressed in the uniform of the security service that usually attends to the outlet.
According to a police report, a 27-year-old supervisor of the GTT outlet related that two security officers from the private security firm would normally uplift cash at nights on completion of their tour of duty.
The employee said on Thursday she and five other staff members were on duty at the GTT booth when the two suspects wearing face masks and fully dressed in the said security uniforms, approached her and checked the bags with the cash as per normal.
One of the suspects then went outside to the other staff members and brandished a hand gun at them. They were instructed to ‘get on the floor’ and they complied. The other suspect who was in the supervisor’s room took out a hand gun from his pants waist and told supervisor to go on the floor, which she did.
The suspects placed duct tape on the hands and mouths of the GTT staffers and locked them in the booth. The perpetrators then took the cash, exited through a back door, made their way into the Giftland parking lot and entered a white Toyota Raum and escaped heading east on the Railway Embankment.
