Mezona Ronaldo, a young mother of one, was reportedly set afire by her partner at Moblissa, Linden/Soesdyke Highway just after midnight on Thursday and subsequently died.
Her father, Foster Ronaldo who spoke with the News Room said his daughter had been in a relationship with Kevin Cadogan for about a year. During this time, Foster alleged that his daughter was abused by Cadogan and just a few weeks ago, he [Cadogan] cut off her hair.
“Since the beginning, he ill-treating my daughter. He cut up her hair and left she like a boy,” Foster related.
He shared that Mezona had been planning to leave the relationship and had asked him to build her a house.
“She did tell me that she need a house and I was working on her house and she tell me that as soon as her house finish she will move out,” the grieving father said.
Just a week before she died, Foster said his daughter was eager to move out of Kevin’s house.
“She told me to hurry up with it and she will move over, but she nah mek it to come in she house,” the father said.
While Foster and other relatives insist that she was deliberately set alight by her partner, a different account was given by Kevin’s mother to the police.
The mother, Patricia Williams, claimed she was awakened to screams of “Help!” from her son, Kevin. Williams said she found the couple with burns about their bodies.
Williams said she spoke with the couple and they said Mezona was cooking in the kitchen and the gas bottle caught afire and he (Kevin) went and held unto (Mezona) to put the fire out.
According to Mezona’s family, it is highly unlikely that she would have been cooking at 1:30 a.m., the time the incident reportedly occurred.
Foster further told the News Room that there was nothing wrong with the gas bottle.
“That gas bottle thing is lie because nothing ain’t wrong with the gas bottle and in the pressure pot just got water, onions and garlic. The man used kero pon the girl and light she afire,” Foster stated further adding that the chair his daughter was sitting in was the only item burnt in the house.
“Just where she went in the chair she get burn up cause nowhere else in the house burn, just the chair burn up,” the father said.
Foster further disputed claims that Mezona spoke to Kevin’s mother after the incident to confirm that it was the gas bottle that exploded and said his daughter could not speak after the incident.
Detailing a history of abuse throughout the one-year relationship, Foster said that Kevin had threatened to kill his daughter in the past.
“Two times before he throw gasoline on her, a time we went there for his birthday and that is when he threw gas on her, he throw hot tea on her, food all he does throw on her,” Foster told the News Room.
Mezona was a part-time worker and according to Foster, she was very hardworking.
“My daughter work she part-time job, she buy a phone the first time, he broke it up and she buy another phone and he mash it up again,” Foster said.
After the incident, the couple was taken to the MacKenzie Hospital where they were both seen and medically examined by a doctor who referred them to the Georgetown Public Hospital for further medical attention.
Mezona succumbed while receiving medical attention and her partner was admitted and his situation is regarded as critical.
Detectives arrived on the scene some 12 hours after the incident occurred.
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