A bricklayer from Glen Park, Vacoas reacted swiftly when he saw an individual burglarizing his car while he was at the counter of the State Bank Of Mauritius (SBM) in Mesnil, Phoenix on the afternoon of Monday November 20. The stranger, wearing a motorcycle helmet, opened the driver’s side door of the car and grabbed a satchel before fleeing. He gave chase to the suspect and, with the help of members of the public, was able to arrest him and hand him over to the police. The alleged thief, Jean Alexandre Mervin, a 23-year-old mason living in Cité Maherbes, Eau Coulée, was handed over to the police. The bag containing various documents and a sum of Rs 10,000 was recovered.
It was 1.30 p.m. on the afternoon of Monday November 20, and the 23-year-old bricklayer had just parked his car, a grey Toyota, in the SBM Mesnil parking area to make a bank withdrawal. While he was at the counter, he saw an individual wearing a motorcycle case, a black jacket and denim pants lurking around his car. At some point he had to open the driver’s side door of his car, which was not locked. He had to grab a satchel that was right next to the armbrake before taking off.
Without hesitation, the Vacoassian had to run out of the bank in pursuit of this individual. With the help of members of the public, he was able to arrest him and hand him over to the police at the Phoenix police station, who arrived there within minutes.
His satchel, which contained his national identity card, bank card, account statement, driver’s license and a sum of Rs 10,000 in Rs 1,000 denominations, was recovered. Alexandre Persand was placed in a cell at the Vacoas detention center. He was brought before the Curepipe court on Tuesday morning, November 21.
