By: Andrew Carmichael
A domestic dispute between a husband and wife who would have celebrated their 14th wedding anniversary today ended tragically on Monday afternoon when the man set himself and the couple’s house on fire.
Julius Inniss also known as “Storme”, a 56-year-old labourer of Catherine, Mahaicony, East Coast Demerara (ECD), died after he locked himself in the house and set it on fire.
The incident occurred just after he and his wife were involved in a domestic dispute, at around 15:00hrs.
Police said the wife, Shellon Inniss, 46, visited the Mahaicony Police Station earlier in the day to report a domestic assault involving her husband. She was then escorted to the Mahaicony Hospital for medical attention, after which, a team of police accompanied her back to her home.
Upon arrival, it was observed that the husband ran into the house and locked himself in.
Shortly after, smoke was seen coming from the building and the man was seen through the window, setting the building on fire.
The house eventually erupted in flames. When it was extinguished, the man’s charred remains were found.
Meanwhile, in an interview with this publication, the woman related that during the domestic dispute with her husband, he had stabbed her to the shoulder.
“…he throw me down on the bed and put a knife to my neck. I thought it was a pin from how it boring me but when I hold it I realise that it was a knife.”
The woman said her 14-year-old daughter managed to alert a neighbour who came over to intervene.
“He and the man had a calm conversation, but I was waving to the neighbour from the window for him to wait, but he did not see me.”
Nevertheless, the woman said she managed to escape and fled the house without clothing, not knowing where her daughter was.
Her husband came after her, but she hid behind a clump of bushes and returned home as daylight started to approach.
“When I run up the step, I see he already throws kerosene all over on the floor. I had to walk in the kerosene oil to grab some clothes and run out the house.”
The woman said she subsequently made her way to one of her husband’s brothers, pleading with him to visit the home before it was too late. But the brother, according to the woman, could not make the visit at the time.
Despite the outcome of the situation, the woman said she still loves her husband.
“My husband needed help but the system let him down. I love my husband and he needed to go and cool off…,” the woman expressed.
The woman said this was not the first time her husband abused her.
However, she said her husband had only gotten abusive after dealing with excess stress regarding property rights, following the passing of his father.
On the day in question, the woman said she suspected her husband was angry because she had gotten someone else to conduct some repairs to a small shop she operated from their home.
The woman explained that she had been asking her husband for some time to conduct the repairs but after he was not making time to do it, she got someone else.
