Bandit shot dead during shootout at Blygezigt Gardens
An armed bandit, who was up to press time still unidentified, was fatally shot in the wee hours of Sunday during a shootout, in what appeared to be a foiled robbery attack.
The incident occurred just after midnight at Belvoir Court, Blygezigt Gardens, Greater Georgetown.
According to Police reports, the unidentified male suspect was shot by one of the victims, who is a licensed firearm holder. It was reported that a resident of the area was dropped home by two friends following an outing at the Giftland Mall, and they
One of the parked cars that got damaged while the businessman and his driver were attempting to evade the armed bandit
were subsequently confronted by the now dead suspect.
“The suspect allegedly opened fire on the occupants of the car after they adopted tactical manoeuvres to evade him when he attempted to commit a felony,” the Police said, adding that a businessman, who was in the vehicle under attack, returned fire and fatally wounded the suspect in the process.
Investigators were able to retrieve a .32 pistol allegedly belonging to the deceased suspect, along with seven .32 spent shells and a cellular phone from the scene.
Guyana Times visited the area later on Sunday morning, but the resident whose friends were involved in the incident was unavailable to speak. However, a relative of the man related to this newspaper what transpired.
He explained that his nephew was out with his two friends at the Giftland Mall after
The spot where the armed bandit was shot dead during the exchange of fire with the businessman
which they headed down to Sheriff Street, where they stopped to get some hotdogs before dropping off his nephew in Blygezigt.
The man believes that the perpetrators probably followed the vehicle his nephew was in from Sheriff Street, and after his nephew exited the vehicle upon arriving home and was in the yard securing the locks on the gate, a cream motor car pulled up, blocking his friends’ vehicle.
The man further explained that a gunman subsequently exited the vehicle and upon seeing this, his nephew ran to the house; the driver in his friend’s car immediately reversed the vehicle in an attempt to get away from the bandit, hitting two parked cars on the roadway in a bid to escape.
Upon realising what the driver was trying to do, the gunman opened fire on the vehicle, hitting the driver in his forearm. This prompted the businessman, who was also in the vehicle, to whip out his licensed weapon and return fire, hitting the bandit.
The gunman’s accomplice, who was driving the car they came in, immediately sped off and made good his escape despite efforts by the businessman to chase after him on foot.
According to the witness, by the time he came outside following the two rounds of gunshots, the bandit was lying dead on the road. He related to this newspaper his dissatisfaction with the Guyana Police Force, stating that attempts to contact the Police were futile and it was not until about an hour later that they were able to reach the Police.
The man further opined that the officers who came to the scene seemed unprofessional and were observed retrieving the spent shells with their “bare hands” without the use of any materials to preserve whatever fingerprints may have been on the ammunition.
He continued to express his anger at the crime situation within the country, noting that he was now living in neighbouring Brazil to escape the rampant criminal activities. He added too that the pardon initiative of President David Granger was not helping the situation.
“All I’m saying is that once you go in prison and come out, you can’t reform… you done get turn,” he asserted. Nevertheless, the man cautioned that the neighbourhood was usually quiet and if anyone else attempted to do what the deceased did, they would meet the same fate.
Meanwhile, the driver who was shot in the forearm has since undergone surgery to have the bullet, which travelled all the way to his elbow, removed. This publication was told that he was at a private hospital and was recuperating.
Up to press time, efforts by Guyana Times to ascertain whether the Police had identified the dead bandit were futile. At the time of his death, he was clad in a blue t-shirt and a pair of blue long jeans. The man appeared to have been shot to his chest; however, the Police did not say how many times. Nevertheless, his body is currently at the Lyken Funeral Parlour awaiting identification.
