-suspect arrested
In a pre-dawn raid,
bandits entered the yard of a Rosignol, West Bank
Berbice businessman on Wednesday and stole his
minibus and motorcycle and a suspect has since been
taken into custody.
The suspect was arrested
during a police roadblock at Mahaica around 5 am the
same day and the orange-coloured Kawasaki KLR 650
motorcycle was recovered. Owner of the vehicles,
Farouk Abdool told Stabroek News that he still has not
heard about the silver-grey Master Ace minibus, PGG
4347. He said he was only aware that the vehicles were
missing when he woke up around 4:30 am to perform his
prayer. He said he made a report to the Blairmont
Police Station while his brother, Fazim Abdool made a
search around the village.
Abdool, who operates a gym at
his home, said his brother had been servicing the
motorcycle and had not finished fixing the lights and
had also dismantled other parts. The gas was also low
in the tank, he said.
Owning to that, he felt that
the motorcycle could not go very far but apparently
the suspect repaired it before reaching all the way to
Mahaica. Reports are that the suspect was also found
with tools belonging to Abdool. The tools had been in
the minibus.
He said it appeared that the
bandits pushed the vehicles out of the yard and then
started them. He also later learnt from a security
guard who works at a business place on the public road
that the bandit who was driving the minibus was trying
to pull the motorcycle to start it. The guard also
told him that the man on the motorcycle told his
accomplice to go ahead that he would come after. At
the time, however, the guard did not realise that the
men were bandits and that the vehicles were being
stolen.
Abdool, a sign artist, said
too that at the same time a resident was returning
home from the airport and saw the vehicles and was
wondering why they were on the road at that hour.
The businessman felt that
someone who was familiar with his home and knew where
he left his keys is responsible for the hijacking. It
was raining heavily and Abdool believed that prevented
him from hearing the bandits.
Meanwhile, as the bandit
approached the police roadblock at Mahaica the man
abandoned the motorcycle and attempted to walk past
the officer when he was nabbed. Contacted, a senior
police officer told this newspaper that the suspect is
still in custody and is expected to face charges.