MYSTERY surrounds the shooting to death of a 25-year-old carpenter at his home at Foulis, East Coast Demerara, around 22:00h Saturday night.

Dead is Vikash Budhram, of 642 17th Street, Foulis, who was shot in the neck shortly after retiring to bed with his reputed wife Basmattie Rambhrose. He was pronounced dead on arrival at the Accident and Emergency Unit of the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) soon after.

Rambhrose who said she was awakened by a loud sound, recalled that on jumping out of her bed she saw two men running out of the dark bedroom, and then she saw that her husband had been shot in the neck. She said that the bullet which entered the right side of the neck exited and went through their bed head locker. Police later found a 62 x 39 spent shell there.

It is not clear what the motive of the killing was, since, according to the man’s wife, the two men appeared to have earlier entered the home of the dead man’s parents who occupy the lower flat of the building, before proceeding upstairs. However, they awakened no one, made no demands for cash or jewellery, neither did they ransack any of the rooms.

All that was discovered missing later were a cellular phone and a silver chain and ring.

Basmattie’s screams alerted her in-laws who rushed upstairs.

On being told, her father-in law Ganesh Ram Budhram, refused to believe and told her she was seeing things. It was only when she put the lights on and invited her husband’s parents into the room were they convinced that their son had been shot.

Budhram then recalled that on arriving home a short while before, he discovered that the door to his home was open and his wife and granddaughter were inside.

He surmised that the killers might have entered his home unknown to his wife.

The sorrowing widow, recalled that earlier in the evening he had returned home from work, played with their two infant daughters, then ate together with them, showered and retired to bed.

Vickash leaves to mourn his wife Basmattie, his parents, brothers Sunil and Anil, his sister Emritia and their two infant daughters.

Monday, November 24 2008