-Trotman
In the wake of the recent killing of gold dealer Deon Stoll, government is looking at ways of ramping up security for the sector in the capital.
The 44-year-old Stoll, of Barima Avenue, Bel Air Park, Georgetown, was last Monday fatally shot when gunmen tried to rob him as he was about to conduct business at El Dorado Trading in Da Silva Street, Newton, Georgetown.
“The National Security Commission has started to look at ways we can enhance security. I believe the first step would be to catch the persons who committed this heinous crime and make them an example to persons who have similar intentions that this will not be tolerated,” Minister of Natural Resources Raphael Trotman told reporters last evening, on the sidelines of a wake held for Stoll at the Guyana Gold and Diamond Miners Association’s (GGDMA) North Road, Georgetown office.
“I believe that although it will not replace Mr Stoll, it will demonstrate to miners and others that security everywhere is being paid more attention to. As Minister of Natural Resources, I can only say that it is under active consideration and efforts are in place to beef up security,” he added.
Trotman, PPP/C Presidential Candidate Irfaan Ali, former Minister of Natural Resources Robert Persaud, former Commissioner of the Guyana Geology and Mines Com-mission William Woolford, among others, were in attendance at the wake.
Trotman explained that security-related issues for miners had always been about ample protection at their hinterland locations where the mining takes place.
He recalled hosting a meeting where miners met with Public Security Minister Khemraj Ramjattan and voiced their concerns and recommendations as it pertained to security for the sector.
“I think all of us didn’t pay enough attention to security in Georgetown as most of the concerns, as I said, has been about what transpires in the hinterland. This shooting and unfortunate killing certainly raises the risk factor for miners not just operating in the hinterlands but bringing their production to George-town and being able to sell it and receive their hard-earned income without interference,” Trotman said.
“So certainly, it is something we have to double up our procedures on. We do have a hinterland security committee and that meets regularly and includes a voice from the mining sector but the focus, for the most part, were on the hinterlands,” he said.
In a statement issued last week, the GGDMA had expressed its sorrow at the “cold-blooded killing” and challenged the police to “focus its attention on addressing real crime and the removing of criminal elements from our society.” The organisation also called on Ramjattan to “address this upsurge in crime across our country.” The association asked, “How many more must be robbed, or be slaughtered before it is accepted that we have a crime issue in Guyana which must be addressed?”
As far as the mining body is concerned, it is time for the Guyana Police Force (GPF) and the Guyana Defence Force to “weed out the rogue elements from among their ranks since all they do is tarnish the image of the force and the law-abiding officers.” It added that miners and other business persons must feel secure to conduct business in and around the city and the country as a whole and it is the duty of the GPF to “protect and serve.”
Not believing that enough was being done, the GGDMA demanded to know “Where are the police patrols? What has happened to the hundreds of vehicles and motorcycles the Government of Guyana has given to the Guyana Police Force? Are these vehicles being used for their intended purpose? What is the Guyana Police Force’s plans to address this upsurge in crime?”
The association said it will not “sit idly by and allow its miners to be slaughtered by these rogue elements.” It urged all its members to take “full security precautions” and called on the authorities to take the necessary actions so that “our streets, neighbourhoods, interior and towns can be safe to live and conduct business.”
This newspaper understands that Stoll had a large amount of raw gold on his person during the attempted robbery but it was not stolen by the bandits as Stoll opened fired when pounced upon.
In the process, he shot one of the gunmen and police are continuing with those investigations.
Trotman pleaded with miners to be cautious as they conduct business in the capital and around the country, saying that at times, it is persons in one’s inner circle that relay information about possessions being carried.
“I would only ask that miners pay keen attention to their own personal safety as they transact business, knowing that there are people near to them that seem to know that they have large amounts of cash or gold and seem to be the ones passing information on to criminals,” he said.
