Pregnant woman beaten, stripped by armed bandits during invasion at Number 19 grocery – Three persons detained

Dec 07, 2018 News

---

A five-month pregnant woman sustained injuries to her head, arms and about her body after men attired in dark clothing, rags tied across their faces and armed with guns and cutlasses, stormed the business of one of her relatives on Wednesday night, and thrashed her, stripped her clothing off in the process. She was at the time vacationing at the home and business.
Owner of the business, “Prakash Supermarket and off-licence liquor store”, Dewan Ramdeo, 33, told reporters that he was in his supermarket in the bottom flat of the two-storey building, with his 15-year-old daughter, around 7:30pm, and customers were sitting outside talking, when the bandits struck.

“I saw an individual just come up with a gun and mask and said “everybody get down, this is a stick up”. So the one that said that, continue coming in the shop and by the time me get up, my daughter get up and was about to make a run, and the bandit tell she don’t run or he gon shoot… and me tell she, don’t run. By that time, dem boy from outside come in and the bandits tell everybody get down, and me hug up me daughter”.
Ramdeo recounted that the men ordered them to lie on the floor of the supermarket, and it was during that time that he heard his pregnant relative screaming in the upper flat, so he decided to make a run for it.
“When me get up and run, one of them grab me by me shirt and pelt a lash with the cutlass at the back of my head, but I get away… me shirt tear and leff in he hand”.
Ramdeo said he ran out onto the street while one of the bandits pursued him, “me run and meet up with one of me neighbour on the street and me tell he run; that bandit ah come…and another one run behind he. Me run to me back neighbour and tell she bring she cutlass, but the man that was running me meet up with she, and tek away she phone and drop some lash pon she too”.

Ramdeo said he eventually outran the perpetrator and reached back to his business, but he heard the men shouting, “Time up, time up” and they all escaped. Several shots were fired before the men left with the loot.
Meanwhile, back at his business, Ramdeo said he immediately checked to see if his daughter was safe, and it was then that his pregnant relative related to him what they did to her.
Shamwattie Indarjeet, 39, who is five months pregnant, said she had retired to the upper flat around 5:30 that afternoon because she was not feeling well. It was while she was asleep sometime after that she heard the doorknob to the bedroom door turning and within seconds, she heard a voice saying, “get up”. When she awoke, she saw an individual wearing a skinny jeans with a green rag tied around his mouth.
“When I look in the hand, I see a cutlass and I ask he, “What happen?” He said to get up and when I get up, he hit me one cutlass lash to my head and then I fell over the bed and I run to catch the bathroom, because upstairs have a washroom and I push the door and he give me another cutlass lash… he give me three cutlass lash on my head and I feel blood start run down and I fall in the bathroom and he push the door”, she

recounted.
According to the woman, she tried locking the bathroom door, but the armed gunman managed to enter, and he stripped her of her clothing, dragged her out by her hair and thrashed her with the cutlass that he had in his possession.
“I just ask him ‘why you beat me?,’ and he hold me on my hair and drag me out and give me one broadside each on me two arm and then he she, give me all the money, and then he carry me to the living room, he start beating me again. He lash me with the gun on my neck back and then I start get weak.
“I told them I am not living here and he seh “straight up and go in the room” and give them the money, and I told him okay, I have a room downstairs where the money and gold deh… me gonna go down and give yuh”, she added.
Her 19-year-old son also received a lash to the left side of his face with a crowbar, while her 16-year-old daughter was given a “rubbed down search” by the men.
Meanwhile, shortly after the entire ordeal, the police arrived, but residents were irate and claimed that the police were not “going after the criminals”. They tugged and pushed on a police rank, and this aggravated the policeman and he reacted by attempting to push the residents back, but this angered them and they shoved him around. It was not until the Deputy Commander Wayne DeHearte intervened, along with some other ranks that the situation calmed down.

While speaking with the victims, it was brought to the attention of this publication that the police had not visited the actual scene since the incident occurred that night. A pair of gloves and a hat belonging to one of the bandits was left on the cashier counter and the police had not picked it up, that was already 10:30 yesterday morning. It was after a call was made to a senior officer by the media that police “got busy” and shortly after arrived at the business.
Over one million dollars in cash was stolen from the owner and his relative, with close to $500,000 in jewellery combined. Cell phones and jewellery from customers were also stolen.
Kaieteur News has since been informed by the police that three persons have been detained for questioning.

---

---