Customers at a Chinese restaurant on the Corentyne, Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne) were robbed of cash and jewellery worth in excess of $4 million.
Monday evening’s incident saw a fisherman and a contractor being the targets of the robbers who were masked and armed with handguns.
The robbery occurred shortly before 20:00h on Monday at Chong Quing Chinese Restaurant situated at Number 67 Village, Corentyne.
At the time of the robbery, only two customers were in the restaurant:Virvasha Ramdharry – a fisherman of Number 64 Village and Lakeram Singh – a contractor of Number 63 Village.
While the friends were waiting on their meals, two perpetrators entered the establishment.
Two shots were fired, one hitting the ceiling just above Singh’s head.
The friends were there to try the soup at the new restaurant which was opened two weeks prior and while waiting, were having a drink.
“By the time I was turning around to pick up the two beers from the counter, I heard a leaping sound and a shot fired in the air. The shot was fired above my head and he told me to drop to the ground with face down. So I went to the ground and then I heard another shot fired in the corner. The guy was standing over me and he told me to take off my chain. So, I took off my chain and turned around to give him and he said ‘don’t look before I blow your (profanity) head off’. So, I turned my face downward and gave him the chain, then he said to take off all of my rings. So, I took them off and put them on the floor then, he asked me to take off the band I had on my hand and when he was finished, he pushed his hand into my pocket and took out my wallet,” Singh recounted.
The wallet had US$11,000, equivalent to about $2.4 million.
The 70-pennyweight chain is valued at $1 million while the 40-pennyweight band is valued at $600,000.
The two gold rings each at 35 pennyweight are valued at $525,000.
“From then on he told me to lie on my face and not to raise up before he blow my head off. So, I kept on the floor all the time.”
Meanwhile, Ramdharry said one of the bandits came directly to him after entering the restaurant.
“The guys just run in and start firing shots. They start cussing and say lie on the ground.” Ramdharry said nothing that at the time he was seated at a table.
“Before I could turn and look around the guy approached me and push me to lie down and put his foot on my back and press me down, so I did not get to see anything. He took me wallet, my phone and my watch.”
The fisherman said he had $223,000 in his wallet.
He pointed out that he was waiting on his workers to arrive from sea with their catch and chose to wait at the restaurant with his friend.
According to Singh, they did not know when the bandits left.
“I was on the floor for over ten minutes and we weren’t hearing any sound and then I heard persons coming in the restaurant and they say ‘like you all drunk and lie down’. It is then we know that the bandits probably gone. So I get up and saw my friend getting up too from the floor,” he added.
There are reports that moments before the robbery, a suspicious customer was in the restaurant and ordered food and a drink, but consumed only a small portion before leaving. At least one person has been taken into custody for questioning as the investigations continue.