5 persons in custody after stealing over $10M in cash, gold jewellery from businessman

Five persons are in Police custody after allegedly stealing $10.2 million in cash and gold jewellery from a Coghlan Dam, Pouderoyen, West Bank Demerara (WBD) businessman.

According to the Guyana Police Force’s (GPF) Corporate Communications Unit (CCU), the robbery occurred on Thursday last between 08:00h and 09:00h.

The suspects had allegedly stolen $13 million in cash and $1.6 million in gold jewellery, property of the businessman and his wife.

The CCU reported that on the day in question, the businessman’s wife secured their home and went to a doctor’s office at Vreed-En-Hoop, West Coast Demerara (WCD), to take her son, who was not feeling well.

When she returned home at about 09:00h, she discovered the top half of her back door wrenched off.

She checked the house and found her bedroom ransacked and the money and jewellery missing. The Police were called in, and an investigation was launched. During the ongoing investigations, Police recovered over $7 million in cash.

However, on Friday last, between 14:00h and 19:30h, an investigation was carried out, and the two main suspects - a 20-year-old barber and a 45-year-old farmer of Coldingen, East Coast Demerara (ECD) were arrested and interviewed.

The suspects took the Police to their Coldingen residence, and one of them pointed out two areas in his yard, where he dug up and handed over $1,160,000 and $1,495,000, respectively, and a quantity of gold jewellery.

The suspect’s mother, a cleaner who also resides at Coldingen, ECD, handed over $1,225,000. The farmer took the Police to an area on his farm where he dug, and nothing was found.

However, his wife, a 47-year-old vendor, handed over $1,495,000 and a quantity of gold jewellery, and her adopted brother, a 38-year-old man of Non-Pariel, ECD, handed over $1,660,000, which they all claimed were given to them.