West Bank Demerara, Guyana – A 30-year-old Venezuelan construction worker was brutally killed on Saturday night in what police are calling a suspected murder involving three other Venezuelan nationals.
Omar Nazareth Martinez Rodriguez, who lived at 61 Goed Fortuin, West Bank Demerara, was fatally stabbed outside the Panda Supermarket around 7:40 p.m. on June 14. According to police, Rodriguez had just left work and was heading home in a taxi when the attack began.
Initial reports suggest that as the taxi reached the vicinity of the Demerara Harbour Bridge roundabout, a motorcycle carrying three men pulled alongside the vehicle. Two of the men dismounted, opened the car door, and began assaulting Rodriguez inside the car. The driver, attempting to escape the ambush, sped away with one of the attackers still inside.
When they reached Goed Fortuin, the driver managed to subdue the remaining suspect and locked Rodriguez inside the car before heading into the nearby Panda Supermarket for help. Moments later, Rodriguez reportedly escaped the vehicle and ran toward the store, but the attackers caught up with him.
A security guard on duty at the supermarket told police he saw Rodriguez running toward the entrance, pursued by three men. The group caught him and began beating him. One of the men, armed with a knife, stabbed Rodriguez multiple times before all three fled the scene.
Rodriguez suffered injuries to his right hand, foot, neck, and chest. He died at the scene. His body was later taken to Ezekiel Funeral Home, where a post-mortem examination is pending.
Acting on information received, police arrested two of the three suspects later that night in La Grange. They remain in custody as the investigation continues.
Residents in the Goed Fortuin community, some of whom witnessed the aftermath, expressed shock and fear over the level of violence. One woman, who declined to give her name, said, “We heard the screaming and saw people running. We didn’t know what was happening. It’s scary.”
Regional Division #3 detectives are urging anyone with information about the third suspect or the incident to come forward.
