Shopkeeper hospitalised after brutal home invasion attack

In the aftermath of a shocking attack on a cherished Claxton Bay shopkeeper, a community is now fearful, clinging to hope for divine intervention and justice amidst the chaos.

Neighbours said the 68-year-old woman, known fondly as Aunty Baby, remained in a serious condition at the San Fernando General Hospital yesterday. She suffered a brain bleed, fractured ribs and severe facial swelling during the attack, leaving her in pain, and requiring oxygen and intravenous fluids.

The ordeal unfolded around 4.30 am on Friday, when neighbours heard banging and saw a man kicking down the back door of her home. They alerted police, who responded swiftly and intercepted a 29-year-old suspect wearing a ski mask as he tried to escape through a neighbour’s yard.

When officers entered the house, they found Aunty Baby and her 62-year-old sister bound at the hands and feet. Police believe the intruder climbed onto the upper verandah, kicked in a wooden door and a burglar-proof gate, and forced his way inside.

The bandit struck down the sister before gagging and tying her. But his brutality was focused on Aunty Baby.

“He tied her, dragged her down steel steps, and we don’t know what happened downstairs. Apparently, he kicked her because her face was swollen and she was lying motionless in the kitchen,” a neighbour said.

After visiting her in the hospital, the neighbour said she wept all “When we first saw her Saturday evening, both eyes were bloodshot, so black and red you could not see any white. She was in terrible pain.”

Residents explained that the minimart Aunty Baby runs has long been a lifeline for villagers, sparing them long trips for basic goods. Everyone in the community knew her and believed cigarettes were the intruder’s main target.

She had been robbed before, with people sometimes walking out without paying for cigarettes. On one occasion, two packs were taken without payment, allegedly by the suspect. But despite those incidents, she had never been harmed until now.

Neighbours said they believe her vulnerability made her a target. Aunty Baby lived alone, as her husband died many years ago, and the minimart was her only source of income.

The viciousness of the attack left residents shaken. While burglaries and robberies had occurred in the area before, no one had ever been hurt.

“This crime situation is crazy. You are making innocent people into criminals. Looking at her suffering in that hospital bed, the thought comes: why couldn’t she just gun him down?” the neighbour said.

“She is 68 years old. Tell me what she could do to defend herself. Young people don’t want to work, but they want free money.”

The neighbour added that communities must protect one another because today’s victim could be tomorrow’s neighbour. Still, she admitted there is little else they can do but trust God.

While some security measures are already in place, she supports the Government’s proposed stand-your-ground legislation proposal, which would make home invasion a specific crime and allow deadly force in self-defence.

“To be honest, empty the clip. Seriously. I am a mother, I have sons. But if you go and talk to the mother up the hill, she would say, ‘My son was a good boy, he never hurt anybody.’ Yet he hurt plenty of people in this community. He even robbed the doubles vendor out the road.”

Responding to Guardian Media on recent home invasions in the southern region, ACP Wayne Mystar yesterday assured the public that decisive action is being taken.

He said the Southern Division has deployed additional human and technical resources to strengthen intelligence gathering, patrols and emergency response in high-risk areas.

“We are actively pursuing individuals and criminal groups believed to be involved in these home invasions. Let me be clear: we will locate them, we will arrest them, and we will ensure they are brought before the courts to face the full weight of the law,” Mystar said.

He added that officers are conducting targeted community walkabouts and house-to-house visits to provide residents with safety tips, support services and security assessments. Special attention, he noted, is being given to elderly citizens, many of whom have been disproportionately affected by these crimes.

“I am also calling on the public to remain vigilant and to continue partnering with the Police Service. Your timely reports, surveillance footage and community alerts have already proven instrumental in recent arrests and interventions,” he said.