-
Mon
Repos
market
vendors
suspicious
of
guards
Vendors
in
the
Mon
Repos
Market
on
the
East
Coast
of
Demerara
were
thrown
into
further
frustration
yesterday
after
robbers,
for
the
fifth
time
in
six
months,
broke
into
several
stalls,
carting
off
millions
of
dollars
in
valuables.
Thieves
are
everywhere
The
heist
occurred
despite
the
fact
that
the
facility
is
manned
by
three
guards
at
a
time,
fueling
speculation
of
some
amount
of
complicity.
The
roof
of
Puran’s
stall,
where
the
bandits
made
their
entry
The
stalls,
which
are
located
in
the
last
lane
to
the
south
of
the
market,
were
broken
into
during
the
hours
of
23:00
hours
on
Wednesday
and
03:00
hours
yesterday.
From
all
indications
the
thieves
used
hammers
and
claw
bars
to
break
their
way
into
the
stalls
and
still
the
guards
on
duty
maintained
they
heard
nothing
in
the
silence
of
the
night.
The
affected
vendors
are
very
suspicious
of
the
guards
who
they
said
“never
see
or
hear
anything.”
The
vendors
told
Kaieteur
News
that
“the
men
who
are
in
their
50’s
and
60’s
were
hired
by
the
Lusignan
Neighbourhood
Democratic
Council.
“Dem
seh
dem
come
fuh
guard
and
not
fuh
look
after
the
people
stalls,”
one
vendor
told
this
newspaper.
When
Kaieteur
News
visited
the
scene,
Anita
Persaud,
a
single
mother
of
two,
was
sitting
in
her
stall
number
299
with
tears
in
her
eyes
as
she
related
the
losses,
in
what
is
now
the
fourth
robbery
which
she
and
her
children
have
suffered.
Persaud
explained
that
the
robbers
entered
her
stall
by
breaking
the
locks
on
the
door.
They
took
a
compressor
valued
at
more
than
$200,000
and
an
additional
$200,000
in
clothing
which
had
not
yet
been
paid
for.
The
distraught
woman
related
that
she
feels
helpless
and
broken,
since
she
not
only
has
to
repay
such
a
huge
amount
of
money,
but
is
still
saddled
with
school
fees,
light
bill
and
rent
for
both
her
stall
and
home,
among
other
expenses.
She
estimated
that
as
a
result
of
all
the
breakages,
she
has
lost
a
total
of
$1.5M.
Owner
of
stall
#
298,
Narendra
Puran,
better
known
as
Tota,
told
Kaieteur
News
that
after
the
thieves
failed
to
gain
entry
into
his
jewellery
and
cellular
phone
store
via
the
front
door,
they
decided
to
try
the
ceiling.
They
managed
to
pull
$50,000
in
items
through
a
portion
of
grillwork.
Puran,
who
has
been
robbed
twice
before,
vented
his
anger
on
the
guards
who
he
said
always
claim
that
they
had
not
heard
or
seen
anything.
He
previously
suffered
a
similar
fate
in
September
last
year,
losing
$900,000
on
that
occasion.
The
police
he
said
always
claim
that
they
have
neither
witnesses
nor
suspects.
Bibi
Salima
Khan,
owner
of
stall
#294-295,
told
Kaieteur
News
that
the
thieves
gained
access
to
her
clothing
stall
by
breaking
the
“shuttle”-
(a
shed
that
also
works
as
a
door
for
the
front
of
the
stall).
Khan
says
that
she
was
robbed
of
$500,000
worth
of
clothing,
footwear
and
mosquito
nets.
The
woman
told
Kaieteur
News
that
she
lost
$300,000
in
a
previous
burglary.
Maureen
Rampertab,
the
owner
of
stalls
#293
and
310,
which
house
two
separate
gift
shops,
was
robbed
of
over
$500,000
in
brand
name
makeup,
under
garments,
lingerie,
colognes
and
jewelry.
These
are
mainly
Victoria’s
Secret,
Avon,
Sterling
Silver
jewellery
and
Liz
Taylor’s
products.
Rampertab,
who
was
robbed
for
the
first
time,
explained
to
this
newspaper
that
the
robbers
broke
the
locks
to
the
doors
to
both
of
her
stalls
and
stripped
the
mannequins
of
expensive
underwear
and
lingerie.
“I
have
established
myself
here.
Now
people
know
about
me
and
are
coming
to
me.
It
took
me
three
years
to
build
this
clientele
I
now
have.
My
worry
is
the
price
to
re-stock,”
Rampertab
said.
The
angry
and
distraught
victims
of
yesterday’s
heist
all
maintained
that
they
are
very
suspicious
of
the
three
guards
since
it
is
absurd
for
them
to
not
have
heard,
or
seen
anything
during
the
raid,
which
they
are
convinced
lasted
for
several
hours.
However,
this
publication
understands
that
one
guard
has
claimed
that
he
saw
some
men
in
the
market
during
the
hours
when
the
stalls
were
being
attacked.
The
vendors
are
wondering
why
he
didn’t
stop
them,
or
at
least
raise
an
alarm.
The
three
guards
are
in
custody
at
the
Beterverwagting
Police
Station
assisting
with
the
investigation.
The
vendors
said
that
they
have
had
enough,
and
are
not
prepared
to
continue
to
incur
losses
because
of
the
guards’
lackadaisical
behavior.
The
vendors
are
calling
on
the
Neighbourhood
Democratic
Council
to
hire
professional
security
guards.
Friday,
March
16,
2012
