Cops trying to identify teen waitress’s shooter

Days after 16-year-old waitress Onika Luke was shot to her chin, Crime Chief Wendell Blanhum said investigators are making efforts to identify the teen’s assailant.

Luke of Vryheid’s Lust, East Coast Demerara, a part-time worker at Lucky Star Chinese Restaurant at Better Hope, was shot by a gunman who posed as a customer and attempted to rob the restaurant.

She had written down a description of the man and given it to the police as she is unable to speak.

Onika Luke
Onika Luke

Luke remains in the Woodlands Hospital as a patient in the Intensive Care Unit with a bullet lodged at her throat and awaiting surgery.

Last night, her brother Rickford Ranjee told Stabroek News via phone, that the doctors are not yet able to perform the much needed surgery.

He said a police inspector has spoken with his family and they were also informed that lawmen are trying to identify the shooter.

According to Ranjee, there is no trace of the shooter in the village.

The police, in a press release, said Luke was on duty when a man entered the restaurant and ordered a meal. According to the release, “while paying for the meal, the man held onto the hands of Luke, who was behind some grill, pulled out a firearm and demanded cash.

“Luke resisted and was shot to her chin by the man who escaped,” the release said.

Luke, who is also a student of St John’s College worked after school to make ends meet. Her brother said she started working at the restaurant three months ago from 5 -10 pm daily.