Sascha Wilson
The Princes Town home of a police officer was firebombed during the early hours of Thursday.
Sgt Jaipersad Baran, his wife and their three children were asleep at their Iere Village home when the arsonists struck around 2.30 am.
Police said Baran, 45, was jolted out of his sleep by a loud explosion.
Through a door on the side of the house, he saw the garage on fire.
While Baran tried to put out the blaze with a fire extinguisher, his wife threw the two gas tanks outside the house. She then grabbed their children, ages 12, ten and seven, and ran to safety.
She said, “I serve a living God, material things is material things, but life is what is important. I keep asking God to continue to bless us and he did at this point in time, because it have so many fires where you hear people perish.”
Despite Baran’s attempts to quell the flames, the fire spread to his house, causing significant damage.
Villagers came out with their buckets and hoses but they were no match for the blaze.
“It was not nice,” she recalled.
She said her husband built their home from scratch and works hard to ensure that his family is well taken care of. While the house was not completely destroyed, the family will not be able to live there until repairs are done.
The family, however, is mourning the loss of their pets. They had over 70 Cockatiel birds but less than ten survived. Their three vehicles, two Tiidas and a B-13, were also destroyed.
The police were told that two men were seen running from their house. While investigations are continuing into a motive, police said information suggests that it may not be linked to Baran’s job. Baran, who was last attached to the Central Division, is on vacation leave.
