- escape with $855,000 in gold

Three armed bandits yesterday beat and robbed the owner and an employee of Vishnu's Jewellery, Fifth Street , Alberttown.

According to reports, the three men attacked the jewellery establishment at around 14:30hrs yesterday and escaped with 285 pennyweight of gold valued at some $855,000.

Owner of the establishment, Dharampaul Budhu, told Kaieteur News that two men came up to the counter and said they wanted to clean some jewellery.

SHOCKED: owners of Vishnu's Jewellery Establishment, following the discovery of the robbery yesterday: from left, Shetal Ramcharitar, Mrs. Olive Budhu and Dharampaul Budhu.

According to Budhu, as he was about to ask the two men for their jewellery, he saw one of them pointing a gun at him.

The third man reportedly stood guard outside the building as his colleagues staged the robbery.

“When I push my hands through the small window at the counter I see a gun pointing at me,” Budhu said.

He added that one of the men told him to open the meshed door so they could get behind the counter.

According to Budhu, after the men made their way behind the counter, they proceeded to tie up both him and an employee.

Budhu said the men then started to beat them as they demanded gold and money.

“While they were beating us they were asking for gold and money, and we hand over all the gold that we had and they even took away $30,000 in cash,” Budhu said.

The men then made good their escape with the booty on motorcycles.

Budhu said that, shortly after the robbery, two persons who had taken jewellery there earlier in the day, returned to collect what they had left.

“I think is the same set of people who was here earlier in the day set up the whole thing. Just after we get rob, these two people come for their gold and when we tell them that we just get rob, they started to beat me,” the businessman said.

After that second ordeal the businessman and his employee were both taken to the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation where they were treated for minor lacerations and sent away.

A report was made to the Alberttown Police Station and investigations are ongoing.

This has been the second jewellery heist of its kind in the city over recent months. In July of this year, two motorcycle bandits were shot dead after they committed a brazen $4M jewellery heist at Humphrey's Jewellers.

Wednesday September 07, 2005