…. found dead in number 36 Village
A labourer on Monday night reportedly set his Corentyne home on fire after failing to burn his wife and children inside.
The 34-year-old man had allegedly attacked his wife with a hammer to end her life, but the woman’s mother came to her rescue.
Reports are that the suspect has a history of physically abusing his wife.
However, recently she got the court to grant a restraining order preventing her husband from coming within fifty feet of her.
According to the 28-year-old mother of three, of Brighton Village, Region Six (East Berbice/ Corentyne), even with the restraining order she did not feel safe.
The woman told this publication that after the order was granted, she knew it would anger her reputed husband, Michael Lewis, and she decided to move out with her three children.
She went to her mother’s home in a nearby village.
Earlier on Monday she went to get clothing for the children and after she refused his request for the family to reunite, Lewis reportedly took a hammer and attacked her.
The woman said that she was able to avoid the blunt of his attacks but she was cornered with him still holding the hammer in his right hand.
“Is then my mother come and start to fight him to take away the hammer and he still trying to lash me with it,” she related.
She noted that the angered man caught hold of her and pulled her out of the house and onto the street but with the aid of her mother she was able to escape.
Thinking that as time passed Lewis was likely to be calm, the woman returned to the home in the evening but this time she took the three children.
They were accompanied by the children’s grandmother. Lewis was not initially seen and the children were told to go into the house and get some of the clothing and other belongings that they needed.
According to mother, the children needed to get their school clothing, bags among other things.
“We didn’t know that he went inside the house an when they go inside he grab them and then I run inside. He hold onto them and tell me and me mother that he gon kill all ah we.”
She added that within seconds they were all soaked with gasoline and her husband tried to get a lighter out of his pocket, they all ran for their lives screaming.
Eyewitnesses say that flames were seen in the house shortly after.
Initially it was though that he was staying in the building which was on fire.
However, Lewis escaped and fled into the backlands.
He was subsequently found dead in number 36 Village, East Berbice, Corentyne with multiple syringes at the scene along with this cellphone and documents.
Police are currently investigating the matter.
