The police in Trelawny are investigating a case in which an 18-year-old man from Hanover is alleged to have held up and robbed a woman of $1,200 with a lizard.

Information gathered by THE WEEKEND STAR through sources from the Area One police is that on June 21, the teenager stopped a woman just as she was about to enter her yard at Falmouth in the parish around 8 p.m., and asked to speak with her for a few minutes.

During the subsequent conver-sation, the man was said to have suddenly pulled a lizard from a bag he was carrying, and demanded that the woman give him some money.

THE WEEKEND STAR heard that the woman, who is known to be terrified of lizards, initially thought that she was being pranked but would soon figure otherwise as the 'attacker' made clear his intentions to set the reptile free in her weave if his demand was not met.

searched pockets

The teenager was then said to have searched the woman's pockets and allegedly took $1,200 from her.

Sources say the woman reported that after forcefully taking the money from her pockets, the man ran off but not before tossing the lizard at her.

She, however, managed to dodge it, ran inside her house and contacted a relative, an inspector attached to Area One police.

Efforts by the police to locate the alleged thief have so far been unsuccessful, but the police say they are working with residents and are closer to nabbing him.

"It may sound like a joke but what happened is serious. That is robbery regardless of what was used. We are still investigating and we hope to catch the suspect as soon as possible," Detective Corporal Nelson Tulloch told THE WEEKEND STAR.