GTT’S GIFTLAND ROBBERY: Bandit pays mom’s medical bills with his cut

Six persons including two women were arrested by the police between Saturday and Sunday for the daring robbery of the Guyana Telephone & Telegraph Company’s outlet located inside the Giftland Mall last week Friday.

The police have been able to determine that the robbery was masterminded by a female cleaner who works for the phone company and who also provided the security uniform to help her accomplices mimic personnel from the Guard Service which picks up the entity’s sale at the close of business.

BIG Smith News Watch was told that the female mastermind once worked with the Amalgamated Security Firm but when she and the company parted ways, she did not return the company-issued uniform.

The Police first arrested 26-year-old Mechanic Piercy Quason Roberts of Meadowbrook Garden who drove the getaway car PKK 7701 a Toyota Raum on Thursday night. he made several confessions to the police.

Roberts told detectives that to hide the true identity of the car which has two colors, the roof, and bonnet of the car were covered with a wrap to throw detectives off. When the young man was arrested, he was found with half a million Guyana dollars in his possession. He explained it to be part of his cut from the robbery and related that used the remainder to purchase some clothes and pay some medical bills for his sick mother.

25-year-old Andrea Dover of D Field Sophia was the second person to be arrested. She works as a cleaner at the GT&T outlet which is located inside the Giftland Mall. As she was questioned by detectives, she admitted to being part of the planning team which executed the robbery.

According to Dover, she was approached by one Jomal Halley called “Biggs” a while ago and he enquired about the movement of the money, security company, and timings of the cash pickup and movements when the outlet closes off its operations. She did volunteer the information.

Her cut from the robbery was GYD $800,000 which was given to her by said ‘Biggs’ after the robbery was done. Dover told the police that she handed the money over to her sister, 29-year-old Carol Dover also a cleaner at GT&T.

When Carol was contacted and arrested, she admitted that the money was handed over to her and that she hid it inside a fowl pen at the back of the yard. She handed over GYD $785,000 in cash to the police who logged same as they did with the money collected from Roberts.

The arrests of Roberts and Drovers’ took place on Saturday. The following day, Sunday, September 11, the police continued their operations based on information they received from those arrested the previous days coupled with other intelligence.

Ryan Goodluck, 28 of Herstelling, East Bank Demerara was arrested in Albouystown on Sunday. When he was arrested, the police found GYD $286,420 in his possession. He however denied having any involvement in the robbery at the Giftland complex.

Later that day at Victoria Road Plaisance, East Coast Demerara, a search for Jomal Hally turned up empty-handed but his girlfriend 28 years old Ashly Mansfield was seen and contacted.

She told detectives that she had no idea of her boyfriend’s whereabouts and her involvement in the robbery. The woman explained that she was not involved but when Jomal came home, he was in possession of a large quantity of cash and when she enquired where he got it from, he reportedly told her he was part of a robbery and that the items are for her.

Later the same day, 24 years old Jamol Halley of Sophia was arrested and questioned by police detectives in relation to the robbery. He reportedly admitted to the crime and took the police to the Plaisance Bus Park where he made contact with Calvin Pilgrim a 27 years old bus driver of Goodverwagting. It was alledged that he, Halley stashed a quantity of cash inside the minibus unknowing to Pilgrim. The police subsequently removed GYD $1,150,000 from the minibus.

The total cash the police recovered during their investigation and arrests was just over two and a half million Guyana dollars in addition to the motor car and clothing.

The arrests followed intense work by detectives drawn from four separate Criminal Investigation Department units within Georgetown headed by Assistant Superintendent of Police Sarrabo supported by Inspector George, Sergeant Reid, and Corporal Grumble and his ranks along with detectives from Special Branch and Major Crimes Investigation Unit.