RBPF: Armed robberies down six percent for the first half of the year
NASSAU, BAHAMAS- A man who arrived at his home on Sandilands Village Road, west of Wind Street, around 10 p.m. last night was held at gunpoint by two men, one of whom shot him in the thigh before robbing him of a blue Nissan Bluebird.
The victim was transported to hospital and later discharged.
The license plate number on the Nissan is AS0731, police said.
The incident was one of two reported armed robberies yesterday.
Authorities also reported that around 10 a.m. two gunmen stormed a residence on West Street, off Meeting Street, and robbed a man and a woman of cash.
The robbers then beat the man before running away.
The victim received medical treatment by emergency medical services personnel.
The woman was unharmed.
Authorities did not say how much cash the armed men stole.
Police made their usual appeal for anyone with information to contact police.
There has been a spate of armed robberies in recent weeks, several of which have involved women.
On Saturday, a woman at her residence on Blyden Road, off Cowpen Road, around noon was robbed of her handbag by an armed man.
An hour later, a woman at her residence on Boatswain Jill Road, was held at gunpoint and robbed of her handbag, which contained cash and other items.
Last week, authorities warned business owners in New Providence to be cautious of transporting large sums of cash following several incidents where they were targeted, and also cautioned residents, particularly those in the southwestern part of the island, of walking alone late at night.
Chief Superintendent Solomon Cash said police have seen a number of robberies in the Carmichael Road area where people walking late at night became victims of robberies.
He also said there have been several instances where business owners have been targeted while transporting large cash deposits.
Cash said he believed many of these incidents were crimes of opportunity.
“We have seen one or two armed robberies that occurred over the last [week] and the previous week, but again I don’t put numbers of these incidents because one is one too many,” he said.
“We have noticed in the southwestern district there are one or two streets — when I say southwestern, I am referring to the Carmichael Road area — we have seen one or two armed robberies where persons were walking… and they were the target of incidents of armed robberies.”
As it relates to the business community, Cash stressed the importance of businesses disrupting their routine and encouraged them to hire private security firms to transfer cash on their behalf.
Crime statistics released earlier this month show that armed robberies were down six percent for the first half of the year, compared to the same period in 2018.
Robbery declined 26 percent, and attempted robbery dropped by 29 percent period-over-period.
