Bandit shot dead after Barrackpore robbery

Police detained an 18-year-old woman in relation to a robbery just minutes after an off-duty prison officer shot and killed a bandit in Barrackpore on Tuesday.

Police said the teenager, who lives at Tarodale, on the outskirts of San Fernando, was the getaway driver in an armed robbery at Carmen’s Roti Shop at Rochard Douglas Road in Barrackpore.

Police identified the deceased as Dane Boodoo of Stella Street in La Romaine. In the past, Boodoo and the detained woman had bought roti from the shop, police said.

Up to Tuesday evening, Southern Division police were searching for a male accomplice.

A police report said at about 11.30 am, the 61-year-old roti shop owner Carmen Khan was sweeping at the back of the shop where she spotted two men.

She went inside and locked the back door. The men accosted her 35-year-old son, who was at the front. One had a gun.

A struggle ensued, and the frightened mother ran to the front and screamed out for help.

On hearing the owner alerting passers-by, one bandit ran across the road to Sumanie Trace where the woman was waiting in a car. Boodoo, the other man, grabbed a sum of cash before following his accomplice but the prison officer had been alerted and one of the two men opened fire at him.

The 53-year-old returned fire, hitting Boodoo in his upper body. The other ran off in some nearby bushes.

The woman got out of the driver's seat, thinking the prison officer was a policeman.

In less than five minutes, officers from Praedial Larceny Squad (PLS) in Craignish Village Princes Town were on the scene. Insp Phillip of San Fernando CID, Insp Lewis of Barrackpore, and officers from Area East Crime Patrol responded and searched for the accomplice.

Newsday spoke to the roti shop owner who said she thought the men were going to kill her son and now fears for her life.

"When they grabbed him, they ripped his jersey in pieces. My son does not drink or smoke. We work very hard. I thought they were going to kill him," she said as she wiped away tears.

She injured her feet while running to alert passers-by. She said her son tried to defend himself with either a knife or a piece of wood.

"They slammed him on top of the counter. He is in plenty of pain," she said.

Khan said her husband died on July 15, 2020, from cancer. She recalled that in 2009, bandits beat the family during a home invasion and stole several items. She was too emotional to give further details.

Investigations continue.