Miriam Aertker, the German diplomat who heads the office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in T&T, remains traumatised after she and a colleague, Jerus Mohammed, were victims of an armed robbery in Curepe on Sunday night.
Police said Aertker and Mohammed were in a silver Hyundai Tucson driving along Frederick Street when a white Nissan Tiida that was just ahead of them stopped suddenly and four masked gunmen came out of the vehicle and robbed them.
The bandits stole their cellphones, a quantity of cash and a blue handbag before escaping in the $55,000 Tucson.
The stolen vehicle was later recovered on Bamboo Drive, Champs Fleurs. Police officers found a cell phone and a wallet in the vehicle.
Aertker wrote in a Facebook post after the robbery: “Hello everyone, please be careful if you receive any strange notes/requests from my side. My phone and purse were stolen during an armed carjacking yesterday when we were held at gunpoint here in Trinidad. Am OK. Text me if you need my new number. Have a good day.”
However, she has declined further comment on the matter.
In a media statement on the incident yesterday, St Augustine MP Khadijah Ameen called for the immediate return of a police mobile unit at Curepe Junction.
“Curepe is a hub where the East-West Corridor meets the North-South Corridor and many commuters and businesses will be safer with the presence of the police on a 24-hour basis,” she said.