A SEMI-AUTOMATIC shotgun was stolen from the home of a licensed firearm holder in Clifton Settlement, Corentyne Wednesday night when bandits broke into an elderly couple’s property.

Bhagwandin Mukhram, 63, and his wife were out celebrating with friends a few houses away when their home was broken into and ransacked. The bandits made off with $1.2 million in local and foreign currency and over $800,000 in jewelry.

The bandits gained entry into the house through a back door, turned on and left two pipes running, which resulted in flooding of the upper and lower flats of the home.

The former mechanic and his wife returned home around 11:30.p.m when they made the discovery and called the police. “I run upstairs and the first thing I looked for was my firearm…the safe was open and the firearm was gone, they tumble up everything in the house…they carry away some money and jewellery,” Mukhram explained.

Even though the family is thankful that this incident occurred while they were out, they are fearful that the men will harm innocent persons if the firearm is not recovered soon. “I am very worried about it because I know they will do big damage with it…some in this area are jumping houses and now they get that firearm they will do bigger crime because they want a firearm very long…we didn’t sleep last night and neighbors around are wondering what they (bandits) will do with the gun.

Mukhram has been a licensed firearm holder for over 25 years and said his firearm is always properly secured. A young man from the area has been taken into custody with two pieces of equipment police suspect were used to commit the crime. Many residents are victims of break and enter and one person explained that this has been ongoing for months; they are hoping that police will crackdown on those responsible since they are known elements in the area.