SHASTRI BOODAN
GML Freelance Correspondent
A 42-year-old breast cancer survivor is calling for stronger security measures to protect elderly residents in Mc Bean, Couva, after masked, armed men broke into her family’s home and robbed her parents at gunpoint.
The woman, who lives with her 37-year-old sister and her parents, told Guardian Media that the intruders entered their home along Calcutta Road on Thursday, tied up her 65-year-old father and terrorised her 64-year-old mother.
She said the ordeal had left the entire family traumatised, with members struggling to sleep at night.
The woman believes elderly residents in the community are increasingly being targeted by criminals and is urging the authorities to take decisive action to improve their safety.
“Two months ago, an elderly neighbour of mine was robbed. Two years ago, another 82-year-old man who lives nearby was also robbed at gunpoint,” she said.
She said her parents were particularly vulnerable, as her father was retired and awaiting his government pension grant.
According to the woman, the intruders entered the property through the back fence and proceeded to rob her father, but left with little or nothing.
Despite the limited amount of property taken, she said the psychological impact on the family had been significant.
“My parents and we as a family remain traumatised,” she said.
The woman, who has since returned to her public service job after battling breast cancer, said the incident had heightened her concerns about the safety of elderly people in the area.
“We are all traumatised and can’t sleep at night,” she said.
She acknowledged that Couva police had been keeping the family updated on the investigation but said more needed to be done to address crime in the community.
She called for a Zone of Special Operations (ZOSO) to be established in the area, claiming that criminals were moving into the community and targeting vulnerable residents.
“We need to get this Zone of Special Operations (ZOSO) in our community. There are too many criminals migrating into our community and renting apartments and targeting the elderly,” she said.
The woman fears that the reported robberies involving elderly residents point to a wider security concern and is appealing to the authorities to intervene before another household experiences a similar ordeal.
She hopes her family’s experience will prompt greater attention to the safety of older people in Mc Bean and surrounding communities.
