Home invasion leaves Grove family traumatised

Three armed bandits on Friday evening invaded the home of a family at Golden Grove, East Bank Demerara, relieving them of cash and jewellery while binding and beating them.
Reports are that the incident occurred at about 19:00h at Section A, Block Y Golden Grove Housing Scheme on the East Bank of Demerara as one of the occupants, 49-year-old Robin Ramdyal, was sitting on a bench in front of his house.

Ramdyal told Guyana Times on Saturday that he felt a cold metal object touching his neck, and as he turned around, he was confronted by three men, all of whom were armed with handguns. They demanded that Ramdyal hand over all the money and jewellery in his possession.
“They tell me don’t make any sound or noise. Then they tell me get up and let we come here (in the house). They want the money and the jewels, so I tell them we ain’t got that,” he said.
The men then took the man inside the house, where his two sisters were, and again made their demands.
His 44-year-old sister Nomina Ramdyal recalled the horrific incident, stating that she was in the living room when she saw the bandits leading her brother into the house.
After being threatened, Nomina explained, she was fearful for her life and told the bandits there was some money in the wardrobe of one of the bedrooms.
“I was lying on the chair and my sister was sitting, and I see the guy coming with the gun. He come in and point the gun at me and ask, ‘Where is the money and gold?’ So I tell he that it get some money in the wardrobe, but he went in and didn’t find anything,” she said.
At that point, the woman said, the men exited the bedroom and carried her with them a second time, and this time they found a sum of Gy$70,000, US$500, two gold chains, two gold rings, one silver bracelet, and two Identification (ID) cards.
The siblings were asked to lie on the ground, where they were bound. It was indicated that the men were dissatisfied with the items which they had found, and they proceeded to ransack the house. Nomina Ramdyal was kicked to the stomach while her brother was gun-butted several times to the head. Her sister, however, was unharmed.
“They still tie up my foot and hand at the back, and they want the rest of money; and one of them tell me mustn’t look at he, and they beat me and my brother with the gun,”Nomina detailed.
“They said don’t look at them, so is when I turn when one went into the room that them man start lash me with the gun by me face, and they lash me by my head,” her brother added.
After the men had left, the injured woman said, her brother managed to enter the kitchen, and he found a knife which was used to untie them.
“When they left I didn’t hear any noise or anything, and I manage to slip out the cord from my foot that they tie me with. I run in the kitchen and get a knife and free them,” Robin Ramdyal said.
Nomina’s son and neighbours were immediately summoned, and the injured Ramdyals were taken to the Police station to file a report, and later to a medical institution to receive treatment.
According to the injured woman, she has been living in the area since 2015, but this is the first time such an incident has occurred to her. However, she claimed that there are numerous criminal activities which stem from the absence of streetlights in the area. Investigations are ongoing as Police are on the hunt for the three male suspects.