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East
Coast terror continues -- Buxton youths rampage through Annandale RESIDENTS in another East Coast Demerara village were terrorised Friday afternoon when a band of more than 40 armed youths from neighbouring Buxton swarmed Annandale and went on a rampage, attacking, beating, robbing and molesting dozens of villagers.
TERROR
TARGET: Gale Street, Annandale
where several residents were
attacked by the armed gang The traumatised residents yesterday told the Chronicle that between 16:30 hrs and 17:00 hrs the band of youths, between 14 to 18 years old, and many of them brandishing guns, choppers and knives, invaded the village and dispersed into pockets of about four each.
They immediately proceeded to barge into homes, attacking and robbing occupants. Persons, including children who were on the streets, were also molested and robbed of as little as $200, residents said. The
reign of terror, which lasted about 30 minutes, ended when a businessman
in the village switched on his alarm and a group of residents, a
licenced firearm holder among them, banded together to confront the
marauding gang. The firearm holder discharged several rounds in the air.
Police
arrived about 45 minutes after the mob left the village, residents said. Police,
in a release yesterday, said they were investigating a report that a
group of about 30-40 persons went to Annandale Sand Reef Area from
Buxton at about 17:30 hrs Friday and robbed a number of residents. One
victim confirmed the report, the Police said.
Police
said there were several violent incidents during the funeral, including
stoning of vehicles and a reported robbery. At
one point Police said they had to use teargas to disperse a crowd
stoning vehicles passing through the area. Police
said they also fired shotgun pellets to disperse a crowd that was
pelting vehicles at Friendship junction, near Buxton. Ramnarace,
popularly known as `Shook', a mechanic who lives in Gale Street,
Annandale, was one of the victims of the Friday rampage. He
told the Chronicle that he was downstairs when a group of about 11 of
the young attackers approached his house. He
said one of them pointed a gun in his direction, and then pushed open
the closed gate. Four of them, all armed with guns, went immediately upstairs and began ransacking the house, while three others, two armed with guns and one with a chopper, approached him demanding money and jewellery, he added.
The
truck driven by Shaheed Ahmad which
was attacked on the Strathspey public road
Ramnarace
said he was then hit several blows with the
chopper on his forehead and taken upstairs and told to hand over the
money and jewellery. He said he told the bandits he had none and that he did not live there. They took a CD player, an amplifier, and a VCR.
CD player
Amplifier, and a VCR.
He
said the ordeal lasted for about three minutes and luckily his wife who
had hidden herself in another part of the house, was not discovered by
the attackers. The
mob then proceeded to a neighbour, snatched a gold chain, and fired
several shots, one passing about two inches from his head. They
took away a television set and hurled a `channa'
(bottle) bomb through the kitchen door. Fortunately, the bomb
did not ignite, the man said. Another
victim, 35-year-old Carol, who lives obliquely opposite Ramnarace, was
robbed of cash and jewellery. She
was so traumatised after the attack that she has since left the village
and is living with relatives, residents said. Villagers
said Carol is a quiet resident and is well liked. She recently sold a
car and it was this money which the gang of robbers took, they said. In
another attack in another street a 14-year-old girl was molested,
terrorised and robbed of a gold chain, a finger ring, a silver bracelet
and a pair of earrings. The
child's mother said that at around 17:30 hrs, about 20 members of the
marauding gang scaled the fence of her yard and pounced on her daughter
who was in a hammock. They
ripped off her earrings and attempted to bite off her finger ring.
However, she begged them not to do that, as she would take it off. They
then proceeded to molest the girl and wanted to
rape her, but were persuaded from doing so, the mother said. The mother said they then robbed her of $25,000 which she and her husband had kept home to pay child support for a child her husband has from a previous marriage.
She
also related that she had removed her daughter from the Bladen Hall
Multilateral School because of the criminal attacks on the East Coast
Demerara and had sent her to live with her maternal grandmother in
another part of the country. The
child went to Annandale only a few days ago to spend some time with her
before the reopening of school, the mother sadly related. Villagers
said a cane cutter who was returning from work with his pay packet was
mercilessly pounced upon by a section of the mob and chopped and robbed.
The wounded man was taken to hospital. An
atmosphere of fear yesterday enveloped the village, as residents tried
to come to grips with the horrific experience. Many
parents said they have decided to send their daughters to live with
relatives in other villages for fear of them being harmed by criminals
roaming and rampaging on the East Coast Demerara. Several
villagers also indicated that because of the current crime wave they
planned to migrate. Some
residents also felt that President Bharrat Jagdeo should not have left
the country at this time. President
Jagdeo departed Friday for Johannesburg, South Africa, to participate in
the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) where he will chair
one of the four sessions. The
President, however, expressed some reservations at having to leave
Guyana at this time. "I
did not want to go on this trip because of the problems that we are
experiencing now, especially my concerns over the crime situation here.
But I (left) specific instructions and I will keep in touch on a daily
basis with Guyana on this matter," the President told
Editors-in-Chief and Editors before his departure. But
he pointed out that the summit is important for many countries,
especially the countries of the Caribbean and in particular Guyana. "We
are all aware that a substantial part of our country is below sea level
and any rise in the sea through global warming would have a devastating
impact on Guyana (since) we can lose all of our fertile land...we have
already seen signs of this happening around the world and I think it is
very important that we have a presence to make sure that this trend is
reversed and if it is not then it would be to the great detriment of
Guyana," the President said. According
to Mr. Jagdeo, it was only confirmed on Thursday night that he would be
chairing one of the summit's four sessions. "This
is a big honour for Guyana and the Caribbean to be able to chair one of
these sessions with so many countries involved; but also as Chairman of
CARICOM (Caribbean Community) at this point in time I have to represent
the Caribbean. Had it not been for this, then maybe I wouldn't have
gone," he said. "...so
I am leaving basically with a heavy heart but I will keep in touch on a
daily basis," he assured. Meanwhile,
in a separate incident Friday on the Strathspey public road, a group of
12 young men, aged 14-26, stopped and attacked truck driver, Shaheed
Ahmad. In
the attack, he was wounded on his hands and face and the windscreen of
the truck was smashed by a Guinness bottle hurled by a member of the
mob. Ahmad
said that as he was attending to his injuries, the group pounced on the
truck and stole equipment valued at about $80,000, including a sanding
machine and several tools. The
truck with registration number GDD 5508 is owned by Hans Metzer, a
German national who owns and operates a machining shop at Coldingen
Industrial Estate, East Coast Demerara. The
Friday afternoon attack on Annandale followed the early Wednesday
morning rampage by a gang of bandits at Non Pariel, also on the East
Coast. The
gang terrorised and robbed several families, fleeing with jewellery,
cash and household appliances. Residents said the men escaped in the
direction of the Railway Embankment road where a car was waiting for
them. They
said the attackers were about 10 unmasked, heavily armed men who
reportedly sexually assaulted two young women and set alight a bereaved
man who was being consoled by relatives and friends at a wake as he
waited to bury his wife Wednesday. According
to residents of Section `B', Non Pariel, the bandits struck for about 20
minutes from 03:00 hrs. The neighbourhood was awakened by heavy banging sounds on. Sunday, September 1, 2002
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