Victims suspect arson in Non Pariel fire

Dec 27, 2008 News

– man perishes in Parika blaze

Two Christmas Day fires have left one man dead and a couple homeless.
The fires occurred at Non Pariel and Parika Backdam.

What is left of the house at Non Pariel

Kishun Kissoon and his wife, Bissoondai Roopnarine, got an unwanted Christmas present and are now homeless after fire, believed to be the work of an arsonist, destroyed their two-bedroom wooden house at 114 Block 12, Non Pariel, East Coast Demerara on Christmas night.
The couple believes that the house was deliberately set alight by persons who had raided their home and carted off several pieces of electrical equipment.
At the time of the fire, both Kissoon and his wife were out visiting relatives and friends.
Although no one saw anyone entering or leaving the house, the swiftness of the blaze coupled with the fact that no remnants of any electrical appliance were seen have left Kissoon convinced that it was the work of an arsonist.
Kissoon told this newspaper that he and his wife were the only occupants of the house. He said that they left home at about 14:00 hours on Christmas Day, and about 12 hours later they received a message that their house was on fire.
When they arrived at the scene, they could only stare at what was left of their dwelling.
“People move out everything in the house and set it afire. I got a suspect, because he left and gone and we ain’t see he back,” Kissoon told this newspaper.
According to the now homeless man, he thoroughly checked the debris and could not locate the frame of his television set nor his CD player, which he said strongly suggest that those items were removed before the blaze started.
A neighbour said that the house was so quickly engulfed in flames that it could not be electrical. “In no time, this fire surround the house like if somebody pour fuel around it and set it afire.”
The neighbour also disclosed that there were foot prints leading to the back of the yard where the fence was broken.
Residents said that firefighters had arrived on the scene promptly, but could do nothing since the building was already destroyed.
A few months ago, a Non Pariel resident allegedly set fire to the house he shared with his wife and four children, following months of domestic problems.
He has since been charged with arson.
And earlier Christmas Day, at around 02:00 hours, Dhanraj Seemangal, 28, who was a farmer by profession, died when his home in Parika, East Bank Essequibo, caught afire by causes yet unknown.
Seemangal’s neighbours reported seeing the man’s home ablaze, and later investigations discovered charred remains of a body, believed to be that of Seemangal.
The dead farmer had reportedly threatened to commit suicide previously, which resulted in his wife and children moving out of the house. These threats have raised questions as to whether or not the dead man lit the house afire himself.