A 23-year-old Sophia labourer was fatally shot on Sunday night after he resisted the efforts of two men to rob him of his motorcycle in front of his home.
One of the men was apprehended minutes later by public-spirited citizens and the motorcycle was recovered.
Dead is Alwin Griffith of Lot 632 ‘A’ Field, South Sophia.
The young man’s sister, Lincy Wilson, told Stabroek News that nothing was taken from her brother but his newly purchased motorcycle, which the bandits were after.
According to the police, on Sunday at around 21:30 hours, Griffith was sitting on his black CB1 motorcycle, CM3560, in front of his home when two males approached him, one of whom pointed a handgun at him and tried to take away his motorcycle. A scuffle ensued, and the suspect who had the handgun discharged a round that hit Griffith to the right side of his upper chest.
Griffith ran off a short distance and collapsed on the roadway while the suspects attempted to mount Griffith’s motorcycle, but an alarm was raised by residents in the area who went to the victim’s assistance.
The suspects then ran in an attempt to escape, but the residents gave chase and managed to apprehend one of them, who was subsequently identified as a 19-year-old Campbell Street, Albouystown, Georgetown resident. The victim was then rushed to Georgetown Public Hospital (GPH) by residents but was pronounced dead on arrival.
The police said that the suspect, who was beaten by residents, was also taken to the GPH in an unconscious state. He is presently receiving medical attention under police guard, while the body of the deceased is currently at the GPH mortuary awaiting a post-mortem examination.
Stabroek News visited the scene and a resident who witnessed the incident recalled that on Sunday night he was about to leave his yard when he saw the two men come out of a street, cross the bridge that leads to his street, and walk up to Griffith and order, “Pass it!”. One then shot him at close range. The resident recalled that the men then jumped on Griffith’s motorcycle and were about to escape, but the motorcycle’s engine cut out and the men ran over the bridge to escape.
He said that at first he thought the men were Griffith’s friends. The incident happened so fast that he could not do anything at the time but just stand in bewilderment.
The deceased’s sister, Wilson, related to this newspaper that around 10:00 pm she received a phone call from another brother, informing her that Griffith had been shot and robbed. She said that when she rushed to the GPH he had already died.
She said that her brother recently moved back home to his mother’s residence, where he worked, and bought the motorcycle just under a month ago. She added, “… the men came for the bike, but due to how people retaliated, they didn’t get to take the bike.” She noted that she was informed by a doctor that her brother was shot in the chest.
