Bandits early Monday morning terrorised and robbed a seventy-four-year-old woman who has come home for the holidays, escaping with an undisclosed sum of US dollars and other items.

When this newspaper visited her Broad Street home, a shaken Naomi Mack related the horrifying ordeal.

According to her, it was 2:30 a.m. when she heard a disturbing sound at her front door but before she had a chance to investigate three heavily armed and masked men broke her bedroom window and stormed the home.

One of the men grabbed her grand-daughter by her hair and demanded that Mack hand over her “US dollars”.

Mack related that as she hesitated, she received a slap from one of her attackers and was thrown to the ground. She was then dragged to her feet and hurled against the wall.

According to Mack that was all she could bear, so she quietly went under her bed and handed over the money.

She related that a neighbour attempted to intervene unaware that the men had guns.

However, the young rescuer was greeted with two gunshots and quickly retreated.

Upon hearing gunshots another neighbour promptly called the police who arrived some time later. Mack left Guyana some twenty years ago and returns every year to celebrate Christmas with her family here.

She expressed her anger at the attack but held firm that she will never stop coming back, describing herself as a Guyanese who would not desert her country.

She disclosed that the money was for bills and Christmas expenses. The bandits also took a suitcase in which they carted off sneakers, t-shirts, her American passport, a telephone and a VCR.

According to Mack her grand-daughter lodged a complaint at the Ruimveldt Police Station and was told that the matter will be thoroughly investigated.

Thursday, December 12, 2002