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Holiday from hell: The terrifying moment a couple were robbed at gunpoint



This is the terrifying moment a holidaying couple were robbed at gunpoint by two masked bandits.

Heidi Burton and Dan Landsborough were riding along a dirt road in Guatemala when two men in balaclavas leapt from bushes, waving a gun and a machete, and forced them to stop.

They tore the rings from her fingers and used the machete to hack off a bag filled with money, an iPod and an iPhone they had strapped to the motorbike.

The pair, both 34, were badly shaken but unhurt in the raid on the road between Santiago Atitlan and San Pedro La Laguna in Solola.

Heidi, an illustrator from Cambridge, filmed the ordeal on the headcam she was wearing.

She said: 'When the first 'bandito' ran out ahead of us pointing a gun, there was an initial feeling of dread.

'Then the second man jumped out with a machete demanding money and we knew the best thing to do was give them what they want and get out of there.



'I'd hidden my valuables well and left my backpack at the hotel out of caution.

'I felt violated, being searched and having rings pulled off my fingers by a masked, armed robber, but the feeling of not knowing how far it will go was the worst thing.'

She added: 'Dan's motorcycle tank bag was cut off with a machete.

'It contained a fake wallet with expired cards, a real $100 note and a few electronic items such as an e-reader, iPhone and iPod.

'Luckily we had hidden our bank cards, money, and other valuables elsewhere.



'Apparently this road is notorious for robberies though we hadn't seen any reports online for a few years and people we met had used it with no issues.'

Heidi started backpacking in Central America in November and has also been chased by a pack of wild dogs.

She met Canadian Dan in Mexico and joined him on a motorcycle trip from Canada to Argentina.

She added: 'I would still recommend people visit beautiful Guatemala and not be put off by crimes like this.

'Otherwise this has felt like a very safe country with warm and kind inhabitants.'