A 50-year-old Berbice man who was recently detained in connection with the $7.8M robbery of a cambio dealer back in October, appeared yesterday in court charged with the attack and was remanded to prison by Magistrate Hazel Octive Hamilton.
Winston Inniss, a semi-retired security guard of Belladrum, West Coast Berbice was not required to plead to the indictable charge of robbery under arms when it was read to him in the Georgetown Magistrate’s Court yesterday.
Dressed in a white jersey and three-quarter pants, the father of three stood expressionless and still throughout most of the hearing. As the case was coming to an end, Inniss began crying and bowed his head as he tried to control his emotions.
It is alleged that on October 24 at Subryanville, Georgetown being armed with a gun, Inniss robbed Roy Sarjoo of one Glock pistol, seven 9mm rounds of ammunition, $1,288,000 cash, US$23,000 which is equivalent to $4,646,000 Guyana currency, $16,400 Trinidad and Tobago currency which is equivalent to
$500,800 and $10,564 Barbadian currency which is equivalent to $1,014,140, a total value of $7,817,944.
On the day of the incident Sarjoo, 36 years, of A&N Sarjoo Cambio on America Street, Georgetown was attacked and robbed at the corner of Third Avenue and Church Road, Subryanville by nine men, all armed with handguns.
The businessman, his eight-year-old daughter and Mohamed Raza, an employee, were travelling in his car along Third Avenue when Sarjoo observed a white Canter truck blocking his path ahead at Church Road. He became suspicious and attempted to turn around but the armed men jumped off the truck and rushed toward his vehicle. Reports had stated that the bandits robbed Sarjoo and Raza at gunpoint and took away the cambio dealer’s licensed 9mm pistol with 17 rounds, along with a bag containing the local and foreign currencies and fled the scene in a Canter truck, which was used to block the path of Sarjoo’s car. At the time Sarjoo was taking his daughter home from school.
Following the robbery several persons were taken into custody for questioning but were all subsequently released. Initial reports are that the persons were detained after their telephone numbers were found in a cellular phone which was picked up by police from the robbery scene. A police source had informed this newspaper that Inniss was arrested on Saturday last after he was spotted upstairs of the A&N Sarjoo building on America Street imbibing in the company of others.
Attorney-at-law Ronald Burch-Smith who represented Inniss in court yesterday made a lengthy, unsuccessful bail application.
He told the court that his client is originally from Belladrum but would spend time at his girlfriend’s home in East Ruimveldt.
The defence counsel said that he was instructed that during the course of the investigation, no confrontation was held between Inniss and the virtual complainant (VC) or any other person who was in the VC’s company.
He pointed out that there is absolutely no evidence connecting his client to the offence or anything that would stand up in court.
Refuting a report in this newspaper, the counsel said that his client has never been charged, suspected or accused of any crime, adding that he had never been deported from the US. He pointed out that on the day of the said robbery Inniss was “minding his own business”. He informed the court that two men came up to his client and spoke with him but shortly after police came and took him away.
Burch-Smith submitted that taking into account the amount of money involved, he is sympathetic to the VC. He said too that everyone is concerned about these serious crimes that are taking place.
“It’s very rare that a man of his age would commit such an offence your honour
