By Bibi Khatoon
A Parfaite Harmonie, West Bank Demerara family is still trying to cope after two armed men invaded their home; assaulted them in the wee hours this morning and calls to 911 went unanswered.
The bandits, who were not masked, reportedly gained access to the house by cutting the zinc on the top of the family’s grocery shop, which is connected to flat concrete house.
Naresh Persaud, a businessman said he and his wife, Samantha Thakurdeen were awakened at about 2:30hrs by a strange sound. Persaud said he then observed two men in his bedroom but before he could scream for help, one of the men strangled him and pointed a gun at his head.
This caused his wife to scream but she was struck to her face by the other bandit.
“They said to shut up and get on the ground,” a traumatised Samantha told News Room.
Persaud was gun-butted and suffered injuries to head. The couple’s 5-year-old daughter, who was also on the bed, witnessed the entire ordeal.
One of the gunmen went into the other room where he encountered the couple’s 20-year-old son.
The visibly shaken woman said she pleaded with the suspect not to harm her children after which he told his accomplice “do not harm anybody.”
The gunman took the son to the couple’s bedroom, where they were tied up and mouths duct taped.
The bandits ransacked the house but could not find any money; the family has been operating grocery store for some five years.
“This is stupidness, you have a big shop and you don’t have no cash at home…you got to get more money or else somebody will ‘get it’ tonight,” one of the bandits allegedly told the family.
The gunmen subsequently found some money in the son’s room, which he was saving; they also took cellphones, laptops, cigarettes, the keys to the family’s Fielder Wagon and phone cards.
Samantha estimates approximately $900,000 in losses.
The house is equipped with security cameras but the men also escaped with the tape which was kept in the couple’s room.
Samantha told News Room that the bandits switched off the lights and used the keys to exit the house.
NO ANSWER FROM 911
The couple said they called 911 but no one answered; they then contacted the La Grange Police Station and officers who were on patrol responded.
Persaud is pleading with the Guyana Police Force to send regular patrols to the Parfaite Harmonie area which he said has seen many robberies in the past.
“Almost all the shops in this areas [have] been robbed,” the man said.”
“The police time, when you report these things, it takes too long to respond to it and as such, you put people at more risk. We need to have regular patrols to be able to do something for the small business people,” the man said.
