A Corentyne labourer is now dead after he was reportedly shot once by a grocery/liquor store owner at Lesbeholden, Black Bush Polder (BBP), Corentyne, Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne) on New Years Day.
Dead is Yognand Chertam, 29, called ‘Boie’, of Alness Village, Corentyne.
The incident occured at about 11:30h outside of T. Ramnarine store situated at CZ Commercial Zone Lesbeholden.
Chertam along with his brother had reportedly gone into the business place and refused to leave when asked to.
Police said that a 65-years-old male businessman of Lesbohelden, BBP, who is a licensed firearm holder, is in custody assisting with the investigations surrounding the circumstances which resulted in the death of Chertam.
The now dead man’s wife, Roshnie Baichan called ‘Priya’ explained that her husband, although being a cane harvester, also worked as a labourer in the rice industry.
She said he left home at about 4:30h to go to BBP to apply fertiliser to a rice field.
The now dead man’s father explained that he and two of his sons including Chertam and a nephew left together and when they were finished working, they were paid.
The 56-year-old Kusheal Chertam said his two sons went into the shop to change the money so that they can part it equally.
According to the now dead man’s wife, her husband would normally go to the said shop after getting paid from for rice field work to change the money so it can be parted equally among the workers.
She said about an hour after her father-in-law came home and she did not hear from her husband, she became suspicious and decided to telephone him and was told that he was still in BBP and was on his way to change the money.
She warned him not to use up his money to buy alcohol.
But after some time had passed and he did not come home she decided to get in search of him.
She took a car and went to the shop that he had indicated he was going to.
“When I reach I just see him lie down on the road dead. I try turning him over for him to wake up and when ‘Antie’ come she say ‘no pulse’, that he dead.”
According to Baichan, she was unable to speak with her brother-in-law who was with her husband.
However, she spoke with the man’s sister.
The sister, Melissa Chertam said her younger brother Darmindra told her that after they got the money changed, the store owner came out armed with a firearm and asked them to leave the shop.
“He say the man fire a shot in the air and he go out the shop and his big brother stay talking to some of his friends who were sitting at a table and the man shot him but he didn’t know his brother get shot till he reah outside and the man go to shoot him too and he beg him not to shoot and run away.”
Meanwhile, villagers say police were able to contact those who were in the shop at the time of the shooting and took them to the police station.
