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Aga
Khan
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When Aga Khan left for work on April 22, he never
imagined that his life would be threatened in anyway.
Khan is a simple man who fathered five children and
lived by himself since his wife died about a year ago.
He was never really bothered about anything nor did
he allow anything to bother him.
He was content to live his life the way it was,
doing his job as a guard and visiting with his
children and grandchildren as often as he could.
For him that Friday was a normal easy going day, he
did all the things he would normally do around his
home.
He rested a couple of hours before preparing for
work and was quite relaxed when he got to his location
at Minister of Agriculture Mr. Satyadeow Sawh's
residence.
Khan liked working at that location because, as he
said, ‘Minister' was a nice person to work for.
He never gave the guards any trouble and according
to Khan the guards respected the family.
The other reason he liked working at that location
was because his stepson, Curtis Robertson, worked
there too. Somehow that made him feel secure.
Khan was not certain what time Minister Sawh and
his family came in that Saturday night, but he
remembered the Minister saying good night to them, and
inquiring if everything was in order, before going
into the house.
Khan said he chatted a little with his stepson,
Robertson, before resuming his position at the back
gate of the yard.
He then settled down for another quiet night.
Things were always quiet in that area.
At some point during the night Khan recalled
communicating with his stepson who was located at the
front gate by radio.
It was a habit for them to check on each other
during the night.
With that out of the way he settled down to wait
for morning, but that peace and tranquility did not
last.
In what seemed like mere seconds the peace was
shattered with the barking of the Minister's dog and
other dogs in the neighborhood.
“I never hear the dog behave like that before.
That is how I know something wrong,” Khan recalled.
“So I left the back and started walking towards the
front to see what happen, but before I get half way to
the front, I hear two bullets. Right away I start to
run.”
Taking time off to hold back tears, Khan took some
deep breaths then continued.
“When I almost get to the corner of the house I
come face to face with a man in army clothes and a gun
pointing at me. I didn't get time to turn back or
holler. All I know is my whole body start getting numb
and I fall to the ground.”
Khan said he knew nothing else until he woke up in
the hospital.
To him that in itself was another nightmare. Before
he could come to grips with where he was and try to
figure out what had happened he was being whisked away
for emergency surgery.
Khan's son, who was on duty at another location,
also said that his father managed to radio him saying
that they were attacked by bandits and that Curtis
Robertson was hurt.
It was a long time before Khan could really focus
on what had happened, but he remembers almost
everything that he had experienced.
Khan believed that when he came face to face with
the man in army clothes his stepson was already hurt.
The two bullets that he heard must have hit Curtis
Robertson, since that was the only way that man could
have been in the yard.
The man, who gave 12 years of his life to Strategic
Action Security Service, thought only of his family as
he lost consciousness that night.
He had no idea that the Minister and his relatives
were wounded, moreso dead.
He would never forget the experience.
“Minister Satyadeow Sawh was a good man; so too
was my stepson,” Khan said, while wishing for more
than one reason that they were both still alive.
The death of his stepson is very painful and his
heart goes out for Robertson's reputed wife, Rehanna
Haywood, who has seven children to care for all by
herself.
So far, his other son who is Operations Manager
with the same security company and other relatives has
been very instrumental in assisting her with the
funeral expenses and with the children.
Khan says he believes there is a God and that has
kept him alive.
He had another surgery on Tuesday to repair some
damage to his intestines and to further increase his
chances for a successful recovery.
Rehanna Haywood said that she was at work when Khan
spoke to her on the radio set, but the reception was
bad. She said that she could only make out a few words
but she understood that bandits had attacked them.
It was her brother-in-law, Mohamed Khan, who also
heard the transmission and relayed the information
that her husband was shot.
Both Haywood and Mohammed Khan said that Aga Khan
had not told any of them during his transmission that
he was hurt.
One can only imagine how selfless and caring this
man is, they said.
day,
May 07, 2006
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