While two men held her and her husband at gunpoint, Mi Young Walters just wanted to stay alive, not make them angry and give them whatever they wanted.
“I know they (came) for the money,” said Walters, who, along with her husband, owns the Mainstreet Food and Liquour Store in Ashmont. She told herself, ‘Don’t make them mad.’
RCMP have charged three people in association with a Jan. 26 incident in Ashmont, where two men wearing dark clothes and balaclavas entered Walters’ residence and robbed her and her husband at gunpoint.
According to an RCMP press release, the men entered the residence, which is joined to the convenience store, during the evening, tied up the victims and stole a significant amount of cigarettes, tobacco products, and American, Canadian and Korean currency, which included a collection of rare and unique coins. Before leaving, the suspects also stole video surveillance recording equipment.
A third suspect waited in a vehicle for the other two suspects and all three escaped before the victims could free themselves and call police, according to the RCMP press release.
Const. Sam Montasser said that RCMP followed a trail of evidence in investigating the case, that led to executing a search warrant at a room at the Galaxy Motel in St. Paul on Jan. 28. “Eventually, we honed in on those three people staying at this motel,” he said. RCMP recovered cigarettes, tobacco and currency, including the coins identified as missing by the victims. They also arrested and charged two men and a woman, all from British Columbia, with robbery using a firearm, forcible confinement, disguise with intent, breaking and entering, assault with a weapon, uttering threats and possession of property obtained by crime, according to the press release.
In regards to her response of fear and anxiety to the break-in, Walters noted, “It’s kind of coming down, slowly,” which she added was true of her husband as well. But now, she’s even more cautious when it comes to locking the door, and checking to see who’s outside before opening doors, she said. Walters is also thankful that her husband is usually present at the store along with her. ‘We’re all the time here together.”
