THREE men charged for allegedly robbing a New Amsterdam Supermarket appeared before Magistrate Marisa Mithelholzer, charged with robbery under arms. Demerarians Lennox Patterson, aged 26, of Lot 369 Sisters Village, West Bank Demerara; Jason Aubrey,  aged 23 years of Melanie Railway Embankment, East Coast Demerara; and  Berbician Leroy Hopkinson of Lot 37 Stanleytown, New Amsterdam, pleaded not guilty to the joint charge at the New Amsterdam Court, where they appeared on Monday.
The trio  on Thursday, July 16, 2015,  being in company with others and armed with guns, are alleged to have robbed Nazmena Ali of a gold chain, a cellphone, phone cards and cash totalling $630,000.
Further, they robbed their  victim of a 9mm semi- automatic weapon, along with seventeen 9mm live rounds  valued $201,000, property of Faroze Ali.
In response to  the court, Patterson said he is a father of four who has a pending charge for wounding,while Aubrey claimed that he was never charged. Hopkinson said he was charged  with assault, but that matter was dismissed.
However, while Police Corporal Desiree Pilgrim mentioned the seriousness and prevalence of the offence, the court , addressing the defendants, told Patterson and  Aubrey that she found it strange for them to have left their respective districts to be in New Amsterdam, where they were suspects in a robbery .
Therefore, they were remanded to prison, while local boy Leroy Hopkinson was granted $100,000 bail. They are expected to return to court on August 4.
Meanwhile, Lennox Patterson faces two additional charged of being in possession of a  .38 special revolver without  having the relevant licence.
Additionally, he was charged with being in possession of ten live .38 ammunition without having a firearm licence in force at the time.
The charges were instituted following the Thursday  evening robbery at the M Ali Supermarket , at Pope and Main Streets, New Amsterdam, Berbice.
Earlier, at approximately 18:50hrs, two identifiable males entered the M. Ali Supermarket and held sales clerk Tamike Lagadeau at gun point, before ordering that she direct them to the adjoining bond where Nazmoon Ally, the proprietress was seated.

There, they ordered the 64-year-old Ally to hand over cash. Being fearful, she hesitated and they opened the drawer and removed her son Fizal Ally’s licensed 9mm pistol, $350,000 and a quantity of GT&T and Digicel phone cards.

On exiting the building, one of the bandits discharged a round at Ms Lagadeau, which hit his accomplice instead.

There were two other accomplices who were on the look-out, and the four men escaped seconds before the police arrived.

A senior police officer had commented to this newspaper that a Georgetown-based gang had moved to the Ancient County, after the “heat” intensified in the capital city.
The gang  of four, which worked under the direction of a known Berbice criminal character who is wanted for a series of robberies, were housed in  an old dilapidated house in Stanleytown, where one was nabbed  a few hours after the robbery.

Thereafter, at 11:30hrs due to quick intelligence -gathering,  the police went to the New Amsterdam to Georgetown Car Park, in the vicinity of the Sukpaul gas station, where  four men were seen in a car a few yards away.

However, as a plain-clothes rank drew near to investigate, the car driver pulled over in a darkened area allowing the men, who discharged several rounds, to exit the vehicle.

However,an observant, armed  senior rank, responded by discharging rounds before arresting a male suspect.
Around  02:30hrs,the police  observed a man walking in the vicinity of the commander’s residence at Strand and King Streets and he was arrested.After a search was carried out on his person, a .38 special revolver along with 10 live rounds were found in his possession.