Sugar punts, old buildings hit by scrap vandals

– PM threatens trade suspension

Unscrupulous dealers in the scrap metal industry have caused the trade to flash up on the radar once more forcing Prime Minister Samuel Hinds to issue a public notice threatening to suspend all operations again if the vandalism continues.

The Prime Minister, in a notice in Stabroek News yesterday, observed that vandalism was on the rise again and those involved were destroying property worth more than what the scrap metal was being sold for.

He noted that reports reaching his office included punts being cut up overnight at Houston Sugar estate; and the Linmine Secretariat reporting that columns were being cut from unused but salvageable buildings. The notice also said that there continued to be removal of many items such as manhole and drain covers. “All dealers and traders need to be scrupulously satisfied about the lawful origin of every piece of scrap being presented to them for purchase,” Hinds said.

Field Manager of the privately owned Houston Estate, Ramkarran Budhram, told Stabroek News yesterday that the discovery of the stolen, cut-up punts was made over a three-day period last week. He said field staff had pulled up some punts that had holes in them and were identified for repair; they were being kept on a dam behind a padlocked gate.

He said `the vandals must have monitored the movement of the field staff, broken the padlock and gone in with a blowtorch. He said on one of the days, one of the men was observed and checks were done and the police called in. According to him, one of the men was held and the cutting equipment and cart were discovered. He said the men had succeeded in cutting and loading almost three punts which measure 9 x 28 feet.

He revealed that the value of a new punt is some $1.5 million. He said the Office of the Prime Minister was subsequently informed. Budhram said the estates have never been victim to vandalism but he was afraid that the punts, which they left unattended from time to time, were stolen by the bandits.

Enquiries by this newspaper revealed that attempts made to cut out columns from the unused buildings at the Linmine Secretariat were unsuccessful.

Desist

When contacted by this newspaper, President of the Scrap Metal Dealers Association, Percy Cole, said he only learnt of the recent acts of vandalism after he noticed the warning issued in the newspapers. He said he took the Prime Minster’s warning seriously and urged that those persons guilty of engaging in the unscrupulous acts to desist from doing so. He noted too that it has been emphasized to legitimate scrap metal dealers to ensure that they were not buying stolen items from persons.

“We are trying to allow the trade to run smoothly because we already suffered suspension and we can’t afford to have that again, because a lot of families depend on it for their sustenance,” he said.

He said he had received information too that an individual in Berbice was selling punts and he needed to do some background checks to ensure that this was a legitimate activity and would not end up putting some dealers in trouble. According to Cole, many persons who sell scrap to dealers do so mostly at night, and so many stolen items were sometimes passed off. He said dealers are constantly reminded to check for some sort of paper trail for the things they purchase. He plans to issue a statement in response to the Prime Minister’s warning, following a meeting with members of the association.

The trade was suspended last year following widespread vandalism particularly committed on the property of the three utility companies. Following consultation and discussions with stakeholders, Hinds had allowed the trade to continue.