Taxi driver shot as bandits rob passenger outside Jialing store

A taxi driver was shot yesterday when bandits robbed his passenger of approximately $1.5 million in a brazen attack outside the Jialing store at Charlotte and Oronoque streets, Georgetown.

Stabroek News was told that the woman had left a city bank and was about to make a purchase at the store around 12.30pm when she was robbed of the bag containing the money and her licenced firearm.

Police have since arrested a man and have also impounded a car matching the description of the vehicle used in the robbery.

According to Com-mander of ‘A’ Division Clifton Hicken, a vehicle was parked on the eastern side of Oronoque Street when two men, including one armed with a gun, emerged and grabbed the bag containing the money.

According to a guard attached to Jialing store, he observed a man exiting the vehicle with a weapon and he radioed for back up. “I am unarmed and it looked as if the man was coming in here, so I radioed for back up,” he said.

The guard, who asked not to be named, told Stabroek News that while he was waiting on back up, he heard shots fired. “When I looked outside it was a lady they were robbing,” he added.

The man explained that the taxi driver had exited his vehicle to see what was happening and he was shot by the gunman. It was further related that the perpetrators, after grabbing the bag containing the money, jumped into the waiting car and escaped in the direction of South Road.

The injured man was picked up and rushed to the Georgetown Public Hospital, where he re-mained a patient up to last evening.

Hicken stated that the police would be reviewing surveillance footage from Jialing and nearby buildings to aid in identifying the robbers. He stated that two .32-calibre spent shells were recovered from the scene.