– breaking into homes, molesting young girls

– residents plead for army to assist

A large gang of men, some of whom are armed with “bush” (homemade) guns, have been breaking into homes in the North West District (NWD) and molesting young girls over the last week, leaving villagers traumatized and afraid to sleep in their homes at night.

This week police in the area arrested two men believed to be gang members, but despite this and the formation of citizens’ patrol groups in Hosororo, Bumbury and Wanaina, the gang has continued to operate. Stabroek News attempted to get a comment from Acting Police Commissioner Henry Greene yesterday but was unsuccessful.

Residents of the area said it is believed that the men are from settlements along the Aruka River, which runs through Hosororo, which is home to some 1,200 people. Bumbury is the next village followed by Wanaina. These two communities have much smaller populations.

Yesterday residents made a plea for the army, which has a base some three miles from the terrorized communities, to lend some assistance. They said the men would strike and then escape into the thick bushes making it difficult to capture them. The gang has been attacking all three villages, sometimes simultaneously.

Speaking to this newspaper, a prominent resident of Hosororo said that on Monday night 12 men surrounded a house in the village with the apparent intention of breaking in, but eventually abandoned that plan and moved on to other houses in the area.

The woman, who did not want her name published, said the men are “entering people’s home and molesting their girl children”.

So far, there have been no reports of actual rape, but, according to information, the men have succeed in fondling the breasts and pulling at the underpants of the girls, some of whom are as young as 12 years old.  The resident said the men are unable to do anything else because the girls would wake up and scream alerting the entire household.

The resident said the police were informed about the situation last week after it escalated into a nightly occurrence. She said some 10 girls have been victims, adding that the figure could be higher, but some residents might be either afraid or ashamed to come forward.

The woman told Stabroek News that the officers from the Mabaruma Police Station later called a meeting on Hosororo Hill with the men of the three affected communities to help find a way to handle the situation.

“People scared bad. They can’t sleep at night,” she said, pointing out that while there is one straight road that runs through the communities from the river; there are several other tracks that lead from the river.
She said that from the information that is circulating, the men are coming from the river and appear to be spraying a chemical, which seems to have a debilitating effect on persons, before they strike.

The woman said it appeared that the sole intention of the gang is to molest young girls because so far the only thing that has been stolen is a generator. However, the generator was since recovered, having been found in possession of one of the men who was arrested.

Of the three, Hosororo is the only community with electricity, but this is shut off between 11 and 12 each night.

Villagers have to depend on generators and lamps for light. The resident said the cunning gang members would put out the lamp once they entered a house.

Stabroek News was told a 12-year-old schoolgirl from the village was molested but was sent to school without the matter being reported to the police as the station is located some 3½ miles away. According to the resident, the police station is too far away and an outpost should be set up in the area.

The resident said the child’s home was a flat house and instead of louvres on the windows, there are bars. The men removed the bars, entered the home and cut the net that was over the bed the girl was sleeping in.

The woman said that the child was taken to the police by teachers at the school and then after her mother arrived a statement was taken.

Subsequently, three policemen in a car began patrolling the villages on Monday night but the gang still continued to strike.

Quiet community

Another resident of Hosororo told this newspaper that she has been living in the community for 10 years and this never happened before.

She recalled that last Thursday she was at home with her three children when she heard a rapping at her front door and a noise at the door of her fowl pen some time after 11 pm.

The woman said that she made no attempt to get up because she knew it was the men. She recalled that there was a time when residents slept with their windows open but now all windows have to be nailed shut.
The resident said there was probably very little the police could do, since there were only about six officers manning the police station.

A father recalled to Stabroek News yesterday how he was awakened by the screams of his 15-year-old daughter during the wee hours of last Thursday.

He said he rushed to her aid and heard footsteps at the back of house. He later found his back door open but there was no one in sight.

The man said the children of a headmaster who runs a school 7-8 miles up river were molested on Monday night.

He explained that the homes in these communities are not as close together as those in the city and there is thick bush between many properties. He said that on Monday night alone there were at least three incidents.

According to the reports, some of the men wear masks and are armed with guns.

The resident stressed that his community was once a peaceful one but today, once it gets dark residents are consumed by fear as they do not know what the men will do next.