Philipsburg: --- The police department has reported that over the past five days there has been an increased in armed robberies. Police spokesman Ricardo Henson in a press release said that from November 3 to 8th several armed robberies were reported, most of which were violent. Henson said during this period at least 12-armed robberies were committed. The police spokesman said these robberies were committed by youngsters who are operating in groups of three to four persons.
The robbers Henson said are armed with handguns and or shotguns. The robbers are using excessive force such as beating their victims in their head with the butt of a gun and firing gunshots to overpower their victims and in doing so securing the success of the robbery. Chinese restaurants and supermarkets, parking lots of brothels and number offices just to mention a few of the businesses, were victims to these robberies.
The locations were Sint Peters, Philipsburg, Cole Bay, Middle Region, and Dutch Quarter. The last serious armed robbery took place November 7th when a worker from a popular lottery agency on the island was attacked and robbed of several moneybags. During this robbery, the victim suffered a serious wound to the back of his head and had to be transported to the Sint Maarten Medical Center for treatment.
The police are making an appeal to the public to get involved by giving the police information that can lead to the arrest of these culprits. The public can use the "Tipline by dialing # 9300. The entire communtiy should get involved to help reduce crime.
