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Police responding to a reported home invasion at a gated community in Arima on Tuesday were initially denied entry by private security officers because they were in plain clothes and travelling in an unmarked vehicle.

Investigators believe the delay, which lasted approximately 45 minutes, may have given two criminals sufficient time to escape after robbing a 50-year-old woman of jewellery and electronic items valued at thousands of dollars.

Police said that around 2.15 p.m., the woman contacted authorities reporting that she had been at her apartment in the East Lakes Community engaged in a work-related conference call when two masked men entered the premises.