A businessman was fatally shot in the city during a robbery
yesterday evening.
Ricardo Henriques, 31, of D’Urban Street, Werk-en-Rust, was
shot in the head at point blank range just outside a Guyana
Lottery Company booth on Middle Street, near Juice Power and
Water World, the snackette and purified water distributor.
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The shooting occurred around 7 pm. Henriques was later
pronounced dead at the Georgetown Public Hospital, where he was
immediately taken for treatment.
Richard Henriques, who was with his son at the time of
shooting, explained that they went to buy water. When they
arrived, he recounted, Ricardo decided to buy a lottery ticket.
At this point, a man ran up with a gun, pointed it to his head
and shot him. At the same time, the man snatched a bag with cash
that Henriques had in his possession.
“He just run up, shoot he and snatch the bag,” the man
recalled, as he fought back tears. He said he ran behind the
shooter. “I ran behind him and pelt three shots and he
returned fire.” The gunman then joined an awaiting accomplice
on a motorcycle and rode off.
The man said he believes that the two men might have followed
them to the spot when they left the Golden Coast restaurant.
Relatives and friends of the dead man gathered at the hospital
after learning of the incident. They were equal parts
grief-stricken and angry over the incident. A relative could not
understand why the men felt they had to shoot Henriques. They
explained that the father of two lived in the US, and only
returned to the country two weeks ago to do business. He was
described as a wholesaler. He had been due to renew his US
resident card on Wednesday and was scheduled to return on
Friday.
Ricardo also leaves to mourn his wife and two children aged
eleven and ten years old.
In the midst of the grief, there were angry calls for law
enforcement to do more to fight crime. A friend of the family
who asked not to be identified decried the situation and
emphasised the need for the police to act. “The commissioner
should do more,” he said. “The police need to be more
useful.”
The man noted that when traffic police target motorists they
never seemed to pay much interest in motorcyclists.
Only ten days prior to the shooting, the Guyana Police Force
unveiled its annual security plan for city and its environs
during the holiday season. Police spokesmen promised an
increased presence on the streets, including round-the-clock
foot and mobile patrols. At the launch of the plan, acting
Police Commissioner Henry Greene sought to give a public
assurance that the force was prepared for increased crime during
the Christmas season. He said: “There was a lot of issue and
doubt and concern about the police not having something to tell
the public. How do we assure them? This has become a culture of
the police force to notify the public and the press as to what
we plan to do… how we secure you during this period.
