One of the accompanying photos is of architect Rupert Ackermon’s impression of how the Television Centre was invisaged to look when it started construction in 1994. It did look like it at first but as time has passed by its appearance has changed from a piece of architecture to an oblong box with windows in the style of a matchbox. The progress changes were made to get more internal space and provide better protection from flooding.

I can remember the excitement when we moved in. I say “we” because I was an integral part of its early days along with iNews Cayman’s publisher, Joan Wilson.

Time marches on and neither of us are involved but we will always love CITN and WestStar and the Television Centre.

You cannot possibly imagine the shock we both received at learning of the awful events that happened on the afternoon of Thursday (24).

Nothing could have been envisaged our Television Centre would be robbed by armed thugs! This is progress!

Shortly before 3.00pm yesterday (Thursday, 24May 2012) three masked men, two of whom were armed with what appeared to be firearms, entered the Television Centre offices in Eclipse Drive, George Town.

The men threatened staff and customers before making off with a sum of cash.

No shots were fired during the robbery and no staff or customers were injured.

The suspects then entered a getaway vehicle, which was parked outside the front door with a waiting driver. They then drove off towards Eastern Avenue.

A short time later police found an abandoned car in School Road and are confident this was the vehicle used in the robbery.

The car is a wine coloured Mitsubishi RVR and displayed the license plates 101878.

The suspects are described as follows:

• Male, 5’8”, stocky build and of a light brown complexion, wearing a navy coloured baseball cap, a black or navy bandana covering his face, a black or navy long sleeved sweatshirt with a grey or white sweatshirt underneath
• Male, approximately 5’11’ wearing a camouflage baseball cap with a dark coloured patterned bandana covering his face, a camouflage jacket
• Male, approximately 5’6” with a light brown complexion wearing a black jacket, a white baseball cap with a white cover over the top and black gloves
• Male, getaway driver, large build, wearing a light coloured long sleeved shirt

I cannot imagine the terror of the persons at the WestStar payment office when three masked men burst in brandishing weapons. One employee was forced to lie down on the floor with a gun held at her head! A customer was forced to do the same. A young employee was forced at gunpoint to hand over money.

Try and picture this scene. Your life is being threatened by scum who don’t care a rat’s a ** for you. You have a gun held at your head. Just a small twitch of a finger on a trigger by a lowlife who doesn’t care a toss about you and you are dead. This piece of vermin needs the money so he can buy his next “fix”. Can you actually imagine how utterly petrified you would be?

Imagine you are a bystander. You are there. Praying the gunman doesn’t turn on you.

How do you feel when you are in a thunderstorm? What frightens you the most? The lightning or the bang! Both equally?

The big joke at all this – if there is a joke. A television station is full of cameras. If I was a robber the last place I would ever think about robbing is a television station. THEY HAVE CAMERAS!! You can be hooded and masked but we all have different body characteristics that are distinct to just us. The way we walk. The way we stand. The way we shuffle. The way we use our hands. We all have distinct mannerisms and everyone of those will be recorded.

Even before I left CITN we had state of the art CCTV cameras installed. Some were visible and some were not.

The other two accompanying pictures are taken from these CCTV cameras:

Two male suspects who entered the office

Mitsubishi RVR believed to be suspects’ vehicle

Three people were arrested yesterday following the incident however all three have since been eliminated from this enquiry.

The police are appealing to anyone who may have been in the areas of Eclipse Drive, Eastern Avenue or School Road who may have seen the suspects or the getaway vehicle to make contact with them.

Furthermore anyone with any information on the whereabouts of the car prior to this incident taking place are encouraged to come forward.

Information can be passed to the Drugs and Serious Crimes Task Force on 949-4222, the RCIPS tip-line 949-7777 or Crime Stoppers on 800-8477(TIPS

These parasites MUST be stopped. The commentators on a website (please see my Editorial of today) who think the robbing of WestStar is deserved – you might be their next victim. You can then blog how terrified you are.

Now I am going back to look at Rupert’s artistic impression of the Television Centre. It looks a nice piece of architecture and the memories are pleasant.