A couple in their forties were “shocked” and “terrified” after they were robbed at gunpoint, tied up with duct-tape and left lying face-down on their kitchen floor.


Mechanic Paul Ingram and his partner were watching television in the back kitchen of their home at the Knocks, Lisnaskea at 8pm on Friday, January 29, when someone knocked their front door. Mr. Ingram opened the front door and was confronted with three masked men, one with a handgun.


“At first I thought it was a joke,” Mr. Ingram told The Impartial Reporter. “But then they pushed me inside and pushed me back into the fireplace. I’ve a cut on the side of my head where I hit it off the fireplace.


“Only one of the men spoke. He said: ‘Where’s the money?’ He kept asking: ‘Where’s the money?’” Mr. Ingram continued: “It was definitely a Fermanagh accent, it wasn’t a free state accent or a foreign national, it was a local voice.”


He continued: “With a gun pointed to your head, you just have to do what you can do, you tell them where the money is.
“They couldn’t find the money so they dragged [my partner] down to the room and she got the money for them.
“They duct taped us up and left us lying face down on the kitchen floor.”
With the assailants gone, the shaken couple managed to release themselves from the duct tape and called the police.


Reflecting on the ordeal, Mr. Ingram said: “I do a bit of mechanic work so I would have had a bit of money in the house. I would safely say that they were watching the house.
“My brother usually works with me up until 9pm on a Friday but it was very cold so we decided to close up at 7.45pm. My brother was only gone 15 minutes when these boys knocked on the door; they were probably watching us.”


He added: “It wasn’t the money I was worrying about, it was the fear that they would beat us or something. When you’re looking down the barrel of a gun it’s hard to know if it was real or fake.”

 

He concluded: “We are very shocked. The police are doing what they can and the local community has been a brilliant support to us, calling in every day since Friday.”

 

The couple have been living in the rural Knocks area for over 20 years. “I’ve never been scared in my own home before this. We wouldn’t usually lock the doors until mid-night but they’re all locked up now. My partner hasn’t left the house since; she’s very jumpy, she’s terrified. We will install cameras around the house to see who’s coming and going and for a bit of peace of mind,” said Mr. Ingram.


The men made off with a sum of money and police are appealing for anyone who may have noticed any suspicious activity in the area or anyone who has information to contact Detectives at Reactive and Organised Crime at Enniskillen on the non-emergency number 101 or through the anonymous charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.