This time, the armed robber struck in broad daylight, at 4.10 p.m. on Saturday, Police Sgt. Roseanda Jones told The Royal Gazette yesterday.

A 38-year-old Pembroke man surrendered about $80, she said.

Police later arrested a 24-year-old Pembroke man, who is in custody pending an appearance in Magistrates' Court. The handgun has not yet been recovered, Sgt.

Jones said.

Once rare, armed robberies in Bermuda are lately becoming routine. Since the Southampton Princess branch of the Bank of Butterfield was robbed on October 14, there have been at least four other incidents involving handguns.

In one of them, 19-year-old Ian DeSilva/Simmons was shot five times after a gunman entered The Spinning Wheel Night Club on Court Street on October 30. He remained in critical but stable condition at King Edward VII Memorial Hospital yesterday.

In the House of Assembly on Friday, Premier the Hon. Sir John Swan announced a gun amnesty, cash rewards for crime tips from the public, and harsher sentences for offenders. But any effects on the rate of crime were not immediate. In other incidents Police reported over the weekend: A 20-year-old Sandys man escaped serious injury on Saturday after another man tried to set him on fire.

The two were in "an altercation'' on Somerset Road at 6.30 p.m. when the Sandys man "had a flammable liquid poured over him,'' Sgt. Jones said. "The suspect attempted to set him alight,'' but was not successful.

There were no injuries. A man is sought by Police.

A 27-year-old Hamilton Parish woman was in hospital with a broken jaw after she was severely beaten by her husband.

Police were still looking for the husband yesterday in connection with the incident at 1.30 a.m. on Saturday at a North Shore Road residence.

A 21-year-old Warwick man was robbed at knifepoint on the grounds of a Devonshire club at 8 p.m. on Saturday night, Sgt. Jones said.

The robber took all the man's jewellery -- some rings, a chain, and a watch.

The suspect is described as a dark brown male about 20 to 30-years-old. He was about six feet to six feet, four inches tall with a slim build and light facial hair. He wore blue jeans and a dark-coloured shirt.

Meanwhile, Sgt. Jones said claims by Court Street businesses that Police patrols neglect well-known trouble spots are "completely untrue''.

"There is no such thing as a no-go area for Police,'' Sgt. Jones said. "They patrol the whole Island and in particular they go to any place where there is likely to be a problem.'' In recent weeks, night-time patrols have been beefed up Island-wide as Police try to stem a crime wave.

This includes an increased Police presence on Court Street, she said.

A special firearms unit was also deployed after the shooting at The Spinning Wheel and two armed robberies on Thursday night.

Police have not ruled out the possibility that Thursday's robberies, which occurred within an hour of each other, are related.

Witnesses described the gunman who robbed the Pleasant View Variety on North Shore Road and the three men who robbed a man on Court Street at gunpoint as similar in age and dress. All four appeared to be in their late teens to early twenties, wearing dark coloured hooded tops and dark trousers.

In the second incident, three thugs robbed a 45-year-old man as he was walking opposite St. Paul's AME Church.

One grabbed him by the neck demanding money while the others rifled through his pockets, taking a wallet containing his week's wages.

Before leaving, one of the men pointed a handgun at the terrified victim, who suffered a slight back injury.

Police believe a small number of guns are in circulation within certain criminal circles.

"We want to assure the public that we recognise the seriousness of the recent change in the crime trend and we are addressing those changes,'' Sgt. Jones said.

"We are counting on the community as a whole to say: `That's enough, we're not going to take it anymore'.'' Anyone with information on the robberies is asked to contact Acting Superintendent Carlton Adams at: 299-4321 or 295-0011.