Five stabbed at ATM, one
dies on way to French side
MARIGOT--A 21-year-old man has died from a stab wound to the heart and four others were treated for stab wounds in the French side hospital early Saturday morning, following an attack on the group by three assailants at an automated teller machine (ATM) in Simpson Bay.
The five victims, most of whom are in their 20s, are French nationals.
Audrey Gacquimard, the sister of one of the injured victims, told The Daily Herald that after waiting at the crime scene for some time for the police and the ambulance to show up, the group drove to Maho from where they were taken to the French side hospital by some other friends.
Audrey, who works for the Happy Child Association baby sitting service, named the deceased as Victor (surname unknown) who worked in a restaurant.
She said her brother Geoffrey (22), his girlfriend Charlotte (26), and two other friends of theirs, Maxim (21) and Alex (33), were the other victims.
“They are all in deep shock. They have been treated for knife wounds in the hospital, but they are okay. Geoffrey had slashes on his hand and arm, Alex on his face and back, and Maxim a knife wound in his side,” she said.
Her report on the incident was at variance with a report issued Sunday by the Dutch-side police, who said the incident had taken place outside an adult entertainment establishment in Maho and that two persons had been injured.
Contacted last night about these apparent discrepancies, police spokesman Inspector Ricardo Henson confirmed that after sending out the report he had heard unconfirmed reports about a stabbing incident in Simpson Bay. However, he stressed that the police had responded to reports about an incident in Maho and that was where the injured persons had been found.
The Dutch-side police report stated that the stabbing victim had died en route to the hospital in French St. Martin.
It said that against the urging of Dutch St. Maarten police, persons assisting the victim and a second man had taken them to Louis-Constant Fleming Hospital on the French side instead of going to St. Maarten Medical Center (SMMC).
The report said police had found both victims bleeding in the cab of a Ford F-150 pickup about 5:00am. The officers were transporting them to a waiting ambulance headed to SMMC when others (not specified in the police report) insisted the victims be treated on the French side.
They pressed police to allow them to take the victims across the border. “They were told by the escorting patrol that this was not a good idea and if they did so, they would be transporting the victim at their own risk,” said Henson.
The Dutch-side report did not identify the victim other than stating that he was a Frenchman. It also said that the second man had “visible cuts to his lower arms.”
Audrey said the group had gone in their Wrangler Jeep to the ATM in Simpson Bay to withdraw money at 5:00am Saturday when they were attacked. She said the assailants had been armed with knives (possibly machetes), but no guns.
“The security guard outside the ATM machine never intervened, despite desperate cries for help from Charlotte. The police took 25 minutes to arrive,” claimed Audrey. “All this time Victor was bleeding heavily. There was no ambulance, so they got back into their jeep and went to a nightclub in Maho, from where some other friends drove them to the French-side hospital.”
She said she was at a total loss to understand why such violence could occur just for money.
“Victor is dead, but any one of the others could have died too. We are very shocked. Something has to be done about this violence for everyone’s sake.”
She added that today her brother would relate the exact details of what had occurred, once he recovered.
Meanwhile, it is likely that Dutch St. Maarten will handle most of the investigation, but authorities on both sides of the island must discuss at least how to handle the victim’s autopsy, the Prosecutor’s Office said Sunday.
“We will have to confer with our colleagues on the French side … to see whether they will do the autopsy or send the body back here,” Windward Islands Chief Prosecutor Taco Stein told The Daily Herald.
Henson said police were looking into the incident and were requesting that anyone with information report it to them.
“The detectives of the Special Robbery Unit and Forensic Department have started the investigation into this matter to determine exactly what, how and why this incident took place and, most of all, to find out who committed this criminal act,” Henson said.
He continued: “The police are asking anyone who may have seen what happened or have any other information that could help shed more light on this case to please call the police station and forward this information.”
