MARIGOT—Goldfinger Jewellery store in Marina Royale, Marigot, was again victim of a brazen armed robbery Friday afternoon, this time thieves smashing a showcase shop window from the outside with a sledgehammer and making off with an undetermined amount of jewellery and watches.
Capitaine Emmanuel Maignan confirmed the robbery occurred at around 2:30pm. There were two robbers, one of whom was armed. The pair made their escape on scooters. No injuries to shop employees were reported. It was not immediately known if the thieves wore masks.
The broad daylight robbery prompted an emergency meeting at the Pérfecture about the security situation, demanded by some 20 persons in the business community.
A source indicated the meeting lasted over two hours. Among those attending with merchants association members were President of the Chamber of Commerce Jean Arnell and Vice-President Wendel Cocks.
“We didn’t get the answers we really wanted from the Préfete other than the increase of patrols, but no new action beyond that,” said the businessman who was in the meeting. “What we need is more protection. People are scared. More businesses are closing because of the economy but now it is your life that is in danger. Apart from that the judicial machinery is just stagnated in its regular routines.”
Goldfinger reportedly has surveillance cameras and its secure double entry doors can only be opened from the inside. Despite this, the store has been robbed several times.
The last robbery occurred when thieves drilled a hole through the wall of the shop over the space of a few nights, big enough to reach in with a hand and grab jewellery.
Prior to that the Goldfinger store on Rue de La République was robbed by three well-dressed men and that incident ended with a shoot-out between robbers and Gendarmes.
