Shoot-out after $260,000 robbery in Princes Town

SCORES of pedestrians along High Street, Princes Town, were forced to duck for cover yesterday morning when two armed bandits and a grocery proprietor engaged in a shoot-out in the main hub of the town. The exchange of gunfire occurred as bandits snatched a bag with some $60,000 in cash and cheques amounting to over $200,000 outside Republic Bank, which is located a mere stone’s throw from the Princes Town police station and the adjoining Magistrates’ courthouse. The bandits managed to escape with the loot.  According to reports, around 9 am, a female employee of Tru Price Supermarket, situated at Williamsville Junction, was entering the bank from the Railway Road entrance  to deposit the weekend sales when she was accosted by two men, one of whom was armed with a gun.

The woman told police she felt the barrel of the firearm on her neck while one of the bandits grabbed the bag from her hands and ran off. The ordeal, however, unfolded before the watchful eyes of the owner of the supermarket who was seated in a car parked nearby. As the thieves turned to make their escape, the proprietor drew his licensed 9 mm semi-automatic pistol and opened fire at them. The bandits returned fire as they fled the scene in a Nissan B14 Sentra which was parked and waiting along Railway Road. Police subsequently alerted all major medical institutions to be on the look-out for the suspects and report anyone seeking medical treatment for gunshot wounds. Around 11.30 am, a 31-year-old Carapichaima man turned up at the Couva District Health Facility. Hospital officials contacted the police and while the suspect was being treated, officers arrived and took him into custody. The suspect’s home at Waterloo Village was searched, but nothing illegal was found. The suspect is being kept at the Marabella police station and an identification parade is expected to be carried out today. Princes Town police are continuing investigations.