Two eyewitnesses took to the stand to provide sworn testimonies before the court of Magistrate Leron Daly on Thursday, as the preliminary Inquiry (PI) continues into the circumstances surrounding the fatal early morning accident which took the life of a city businessman and his towa-towa bird, in May.
Rajkumarie Ragoobar,23, of Eccles East Bank Demerara (EBD) and Steven Cox, 24, of Kitty Georgetown, the two drivers charged for causing the death of Derek Mangal appeared in the company of their lawyers who grilled the prosecution’s witnesses under cross examination.
It is reported that the two witnesses, one of whom is an employee of Igloo on Camp Street and a pedestrian, saw to the fatal smashup which took the life of Mangal.
The three-vehicle smashup which occurred at about 07:30h on May 29, 2017, at the corner of Camp and Middle Streets, resulted in the death of Mangal ,45, of Diamond East Bank Demerara (EBD).
Eyewitnesses reported that a white Toyota Allion motor car was proceeding west along Middle Street when its female driver reportedly failed to adhere to the traffic lights and thus collided with a Toyota Raum, heading in a northerly direction along Camp Street. The impact caused the Raum, driven by Cox, to spin and hit Mangal, who was riding his motorcycle east along the northern side of Middle Street.
Mangal was pronounced dead on arrival at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC), while his dead bird remained in its cage at the scene for quite a while.
According to Diandra Mangal, daughter of the deceased man, her father would usually go jogging in the National Park and would usually take his bird with him, after which he would proceed to the Regent Multiplex Mall to open his clothing store. It was during the execution of his daily routine that the now dead man was struck.
The relatives of Mangal spoke to this publication on Thursday after the court hearing and were adamant on seeing Ragoobar (who in their opinion was in the wrong) pay for the consequences of her alleged reckless driving, leaning in favour of Cox who they believed was a mere blameless driver who found himself in the path of the alleged speeding driver.
The two accused are presently out on $900,000 bail pending the outcome of the PI. They are expected to return to court on November 6, 2017, which will see the testimony of more witnesses in the matter.
