KILLED: Ralph Bassoo

Reports said Ralph Bassoo, 44, died after he was shot several times in the head by the gang which attacked shortly after noon and fled in a car with an undisclosed amount in cash and jewellery.

Bassoo was at home with his wife Shireen, when the gunmen struck. He was rushed to a city hospital where he was pronounced dead on arrival, reports said.

The businessman's only son, Christopher, 19, was on his way to a friend's wedding on the lower East Coast when the deadly attack took place, residents said.

Ralph's two brothers, Roy and Ronald Bassoo are both Directors and part owners of the popular Lake Mainstay Resort on the Essequibo.

As news quickly spread about the gunning down of the businessman, relatives and friends from various communities rushed down to the premises in Better Hope South. The business place is at the corner of Graham Street, which separates the villages of Better Hope and Plaisance.

Reports indicated that the gunmen, about five, were dressed like Policemen, had on bulletproof vests and carried `long guns'.

A resident said he was watching television when he heard a series of gunshots. He told the Chronicle that he peeped through a window and saw a grey car parked on Graham Street, facing north towards the Railway Embankment Road.

The man said the right side back door of the vehicle was open and one man was standing on Graham Street while another was in front of the businessman's yard, both holding `long guns' looking like AK-47 assault rifles.

Witnesses said the attack lasted about five minutes.

It was evident that the businessman was very popular since a large gathering of Afro- and Indo-Guyanese milled around the area hours after the killing. Persons in the crowd were heard lamenting his sudden and barbaric demise at the hands of the gunmen.

"He didn't deserve to die that way," one Afro-Guyanese woman cried.

Michael Blair, a security guard living in the area, said Bassoo and everyone in the community got along well and the businessman was a very kind-hearted and nice person.

Police detained a man who was seen driving the car, licence number HA 7700, that the gunmen used in the robbery attack, shortly after the bandits had fled. The car, a `Showtime' taxi, was impounded at the Sparendaam Police Station.

Unconfirmed reports said the gunmen had hijacked the `Showtime' taxi yesterday morning and took the driver to Buxton where they left him in the custody of accomplices. According to the reports, the bandits then used the taxi to rob Bassoo and drove back to Buxton where they gave back the taxi driver his keys.

It is understood that it was while the driver was heading from Buxton back to the city that he was intercepted by law enforcement officers and detained at the Sparendaam Police Station.