The body of a Corentyne, Berbice, labourer was on Tuesday morning found in the backlands of Number 36 Village in what is suspected to be a case of suicide.
His death came hours after he threw gasoline on his reputed wife and three children before setting their Brighton Village, Berbice home on fire.
Dead is Michael Lewis, 34, of Brighton Village. Three cellular phones, his identification card along with one belonging to his wife and injection syringes were found next to his body.
On Monday, the man had initially attacked his wife with a hammer to end her life, but she was able to fight him off. According to the traumatized woman, Candacie Khedaroo, 28, Lewis had accused her of infidelity. She said she returned home on Monday after an outing with relatives to the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA) and was greeted with the accusations of infidelity.
She told this newspaper that Lewis approached her with a hammer in his hand and threatened to kill her in front of their seven-year-old daughter.
Khedaroo revealed that she was dragged from the house onto the street.
“When he bring me out there I run and go in my neighbour yard with my children and from there I left my two daughter with my neighbour and go and tell my mother.”
She said she and her mother returned to the house in an effort to uplift clothing and other essentials for her children to go to school.
According to Khedaroo, her children were sent into the house to uplift their belongings.
“We didn’t know that he went inside the house and when they go inside he try to grab them and hear and I run inside. He hold on to 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 but they managed to run out from the house.
Candacie’s mother, Bibi Khedaroo, 50, was temporarily blinded when the gasoline hit her eyes.
“I pull the shirt that he had on and wipe my face. When he scramble me I din lef him, I scramble on back on him and we fall down and had a scuffle on the ground and I see a stick and pick it up and lash him and then he run away and go and light the house on fire,” he explained.
According to her, Lewis remained in the burning building until the fire brigade arrived and then escaped into the backlands.
Meanwhile, the mother of three told Guyana Times International that at about 20:30h she took her children to their grandmother’s home at Tarlogy for the night after witnessing their home being flattened.
With tears settled in her eyes, the young mother said it is painful to learn of Lewis’ death.
“I have two children for him and I feel a way but it hurt me what he has done to me. He left me and my children without anything, it is neighbours who give me clothes for my daughters last night,” she said.
Neighbours said on many occasions they had to rescue the 28-year-old woman and her children. Relatives told this publication that Lewis and Khedaroo shared a rocky relationship for years.
