From: Rusty�Bullethole, [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Rolex robbers shoot three in doorstep raid
BY ELIZABETH JUDGE AND TIM REID
A GANG robbed a millionaire businessman and his wife of
Rolex watches worth L26,000, then shot the woman, her son and
his girlfriend on the doorstep of their home.
Joseph Martorana, 47, had just returned from a shopping
trip with his wife, Josephina, 46, when they were confronted
by two men, one of them brandishing a handgun, at their home in
Hoddesdon, Hertfordshire.
After a struggle, the robbers snatched Mr Martorana's
L13,000 gold Rolex from his wrist. They then shot his wife in
the back and grabbed her Rolex as she lay wounded on the front
lawn.
Hearing the gunshots, her son Stephen, 18, rushed out of
the house, followed by his girlfriend, Isabella Agnes, 19. One
of the two robbers shot him in the chest and his girlfriend in
the stomach before jumping into a silver Vauxhall Vectra.
Mr Martorana, who was not injured, chased the robbers in
his blue BMW. After following them into the town centre he
rammed their vehicle at a roundabout but failed to stop them and
they sped off towards the A10. Alerted by neighbours, three
paramedic crews went to the scene.
Gary Sanderson, an ambulance spokesman, said: "On their
arrival they found three people lying in the garden. The crews
immediately began using intensive life-support techniques and
set up drips with IV fluids. There was a lot of panic. It was
a very distressing scene."
Last night, the three victims were in a critical but
stable condition and under armed guard at a secret hospital
location.
Police were shocked by the ferocity of the attack, which
took place at Mr Martorana's L350,000 home on Monday evening.
Detective Chief Inspector Steve Woods, of Hertfordshire
police, said: "This is an horrific crime and a very unusual
one for this area.Inquiries are under way to establish the
circumstances surrounding the incident but at this stage we do
not know what the motives are."
He added that they were not ruling out a Rolex gang-style
robbery. "It is too early to speculate but it is obviously an
avenue we will be following."
Mr Martorana, who was born in Sicily, made his money
running a tyre and exhaust garage. He is understood to have
sold a second company, the Extreme Wheel and Tyre Centre, in
Harlow, last month. Mr Woods said that inquiries into Mr
Martorana's business dealings would be made as a matter of
course.
The family were described by neighbours as "very close-knit"
and had lived in the house for about 20 years after moving from
Sicily. The couple's two eldest children, Sabrina and Vincent,
have left home.
Neighbours said that Mrs Martorana had jewellery stolen
before and that the house had been broken into several times.
One said: "I heard a commotion coming from the house
which was quite unusual for them because they are a quiet
family. I went outside and saw three people lying in the front
drive. It was awful."
Hertfordshire detectives are keeping colleagues from a
neighbouring force informed, as the shooting bears similar
hallmarks to the murder of Mario Commatteo, an Italian
businessman. Mr Commatteo died after he was shot on the doorstep
of his home in Whyteleafe, Surrey, on March 30.
Cybershooters website: http://www.cybershooters.org
List admin: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
___________________________________________________________
T O P I C A The Email You Want. http://www.topica.com/t/16
Newsletters, Tips and Discussions on Your Favorite Topics
