PHILIPSBURG--All gas stations in Dutch St. Maarten will close from 12:00 noon to 6:00pm today for the funeral of SOL gas station attendant Gerard Sauveur who was brutally gunned down in an armed robbery on November 30.
The closure is in connection with Sauveur’s funeral, which will be held today, SOL Cole Bay official Ronald Tackling said on Thursday. Tackling said the service stations will be closing as a “mark of respect” for the slain worker.
Sauveur was gunned down during a robbery at the SOL Service Station where he was working. He was approached by a robber who demanded the cash from him. One of the robbers took the money from the attendant and during a struggle shot him three times in the back and head. The two robbers managed to escape in a black vehicle.
Just across Simpson Bay Lagoon, minutes after the shooting took place, Sol Simpson Bay also was robbed in a similar fashion by one of the bandits involved in the Cole Bay robbery. The Simpson Bay attendant cooperated and handed over the cash to the robber.
That same night police arrested two men suspected of being involved in both incidents. The suspects are both young. All gas stations on the Dutch side of the island closed after the two robberies.
