Crime, Murder Mounting in Rangoon

By The IRRAWADDY

A 29-year-old man was stabbed to death by four assailants at a small marketplace in Hlaing Tharyar Township at 8 p.m. on Tuesday. According to an eyewitness in the Rangoon suburb, the victim was walking with a woman when he was attacked. However, the woman was left unharmed and nothing was stolen.

Local police are reportedly investigating the murder, but no one has been arrested.

The incident was just the latest in a spate of murders, assaults, robberies and burglaries in Hlaing Tharyar. A police officer told The Irrawaddy that since Cyclone Nargis hit Burma in early May, there has been an average of one serious crime per day in the western suburb.

Armed robbery has become increasingly common in Hlaing Tharyar, the policeman said, with cyclone victims being most at risk.

“Many people from cyclone-affected villages in the Irrawaddy delta, such as Dedaye, have taken refuge in Hlaing Tharyar over the last few months,” he said. “They bring all their money and possessions with them. This makes them a target for robbers who are mainly looking for gold.”

Much of Hlaing Tharyar was also affected by the cyclone and many people lost their homes and possessions.

“Housebreaking is common here,” said a resident. “I rent a house to a family who brought all their belongings with them. Now everything has been stolen.”

Last week, a 40-year-old officer from the Internal Revenue Department was murdered at his home in downtown Rangoon. Police investigating the case have said that he may have known his assailants.

Rangoon police are still looking for the culprits that executed five people in their home on Inya Road earlier this year.

And, in a case publicized by several local weekly journals, a couple from Rangoon’s Thingangyun Township were murdered in August. One suspect has been arrested.

According to journalists in Rangoon, local police are warning people who live in apartments to lock doors and gates, but at the same time telling residents that they (the police) will not be responsible for any burglaries.