-video shows masked men confronting persons at depot
Police have arrested a 27-year-old food vendor and recovered $500,000, a firearm and a car suspected to have been used in Saturday night’s $10 million robbery at an East Canje beverage depot.
Video footage of the incident seen by this publication shows masked men arriving in a car and confronting a man on a motorcycle before entering the building, where they put what appeared to be cash into a bag.
In an update, police said the suspect, of Vryman’s Erven, New Amsterdam, was arrested at about 2 pm on Sunday in connection with the robbery at No. 2 Village, East Canje, Berbice.
Acting on information received, investigators subsequently recovered the cash and motor car. A search of the vehicle unearthed a .32 revolver containing two rounds of ammunition.
The firearm, ammunition, cash and vehicle were lodged pending investigations. Police said the suspect remains in custody while efforts are being made to locate others believed to have been involved.
The robbery occurred at about 7.35 pm on Saturday at the beverage depot operated by Jagnarine Persaud, called “Balram,” 57, on the lower flat of his premises at Lot 180, No. 2 Village.
Police had reported that three masked men, armed with a handgun, a baseball bat and a cutlass, confronted Persaud and stole $10 million, representing approximately three days’ sales.
The footage shows a car reversing onto the bridge leading to the property. A man was preparing to leave on a motorcycle while a young boy sat on a chair in the yard.
As two masked men emerged from the car brandishing what appeared to be cutlasses, the child got up and ran away. The men confronted the motorcyclist, forced him off the motorcycle and took him into the building.
A subsequent sequence shows three masked men entering a room which appeared to be the cashier area, where a man and a woman were present. The man appeared to speak to the intruders, although his words were inaudible, while the woman moved into a corner.
The man then stood watching as the intruders placed what appeared to be cash into a bag.
During the robbery, another man could be seen beyond the glass enclosure picking up an item from the store and approaching an opening in the glass, apparently to pay. On noticing the intruders, he quickly backed away.
The masked men subsequently hurried out of the room, followed by the man who had been inside. They were then seen running to the parked car and driving away. The man rushed towards the entrance before turning back as the footage ended.
In their initial account, police said Persaud was in the cashier area with his wife while their five-year-old son was seated outside. Persaud told investigators that he heard the child screaming and, as he attempted to leave the cashier area, was confronted by the men, who demanded his money.
Police said the men took approximately $200,000 from one drawer and a further $9.8 million from another before fleeing west along the No. 2 Public Road in a dark-grey car bearing no registration number.
No shots were fired and no one was injured. Investigators processed the scene and extracted CCTV footage from cameras attached to the building.
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