GDF rank killed during brawl at sister’s wedding

Mar 15, 2022 News

By Allyiah Allicock

Kaieteur News – What was supposed to be a night of celebration ended tragically for the family of Chavez Mangal, a Corporal of the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) after he was reportedly stabbed to death during a brawl at his sister’s wedding on Sunday night.

Dead, Chavez Mangal.

The fatal stabbing, which ended the life of the 30-year-old GDF medex, occurred at Lot 142 Phase Two, Good Hope, East Coast Demerara and was perpetrated by a group of uninvited guests.
Kaieteur News was told it was Mangal’s younger sister who got married on Sunday and it was at the groom’s residence that the man was allegedly stabbed.
One of the dead man’s sisters, who requested anonymity, told this publication on Monday that it was a chaotic scene that night. She said that while everyone was enjoying themselves, there was this group of young men who were picking trouble with some girls on the dance floor. She shared that the young men are from “around the neighbourhood” but they were never invited to the wedding.
“There were these young guys there by the music set drinking and touching girls as they dance,” the woman explained. According to her, it was one of her cousins and the young men who had an altercation after that.
The woman said when the fight broke out, the men started to pelt beer bottles at each other, causing the guests at the wedding to run and hide. Kaieteur News was told that Mangal got stabbed while trying to be a peacemaker between his cousin and the group of young men. After he got stabbed, he reportedly ran into the kitchen where he collapsed, and it was one of sisters that discovered that he was injured and rushed him to the hospital.
According to a police report, it was one of the suspects, who was at the DJ booth at the time, that pulled a knife from his waist and stabbed the GDF rank to his right upper chest. An eyewitness who related the stabbing incident to police was also injured during the brawl. He was stabbed to his left hand.
Similar to what Mangal’s sister told this newspaper, the police reported that the four young men had armed themselves with glass bottles and began to throw the bottles at the building, after which they ran away.
The police report also states that the 24-year-old DJ who had exited the yard during the ordeal, was confronted by one of the suspects who chopped him to his left hand and robbed him of a Mac Pro Book laptop computer valued some $130,000. The injured DJ was taken to the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) where he was examined and admitted.
The reports further states that Mangal, who was rushed to the Dr. Balwant Singh Hospital, succumbed to his injuries around 01:00hrs on Monday.
Mangal, who worked in the army for about 10 years, resided at Enterprise Garden, East Coast Demerara and was described as a loving and caring person. “Never a dull moment when he is around; he always made us laugh. He loved us all so much…whenever he comes home from work, he would always walk in to hug my mom,” his relative stated.
Meanwhile, it was reported that one of the suspects was arrested about five houses away from where the incident occurred. According to reports, he was searched and ranks found two knives and a scissors in his pants waist. The suspect had visible injuries to his forehead, left hand and body. He was questioned about his injuries and he reportedly told police that he was at the wedding house and was attacked.
An investigation into Mangal’s death is ongoing.