Guyanese shooting victim buried in New York

From Vishnu Bisram
Guyana Chronicle
June 17, 1999


NEW YORK - Hundreds of teary-eyed Indo-Guyanese turned out for the funeral of 19-year-old Abzal Khan, formerly of Bush Lot, West Coast Berbice, Tuesday afternoon. Abzal died in the wee hours of Monday morning after he was shot by another Guyanese about midnight Sunday evening outside of a wedding reception in Hicksville, Long Island.

The shooting occurred in the compound of a reception ballroom frequently patronized by Guyanese called the Masonic Temple in Hicksville.

The ballroom was rented last Sunday evening for a reception for newlyweds Savitree Jagnanand (known as Jacqueline) and Andy Rajesh Jagnanand (known as Adrian), both of Richmond Hill, who wedded the previous day according to Arya Samaj rites. The victim and the newlyweds were next door neighbours in Richmond Hill before the victim and his family moved to Kew Gardens. But they "remained very good friends", said Adrian, who is in shock, in an interview.

Police say Abzal died of wounds in the chest; he was also shot in the torso. "After Abzal fell on the ground, the gunman continued to pump bullets into him," said several eyewitnesses. One added: "Apparently he wanted to make sure the victim was dead." The victim sister's boyfriend, Mohammed Pooran, was also shot in the leg, losing a toe in the process. He was released from the hospital and would be willing to identify the gunman.

The alleged gunman is at large and Police have released a photo of him to the media. All of the television newscasts ran the photo of the wanted man, Kevin Persaud of Woodhaven, Tuesday evening and again Wednesday morning. The print media also ran the photo of the wanted man.

The shooting incident also made the news in both the written and TV media; all of the four mainstream dailies ran the story. It was also aired on television newscasts Monday morning and evening and again Tuesday morning and evening. Police acquired the video of the wedding reception from the bride and groom in order to obtain a picture of the gunman; copies of the video were also released to news reporters. And clippings of the reception were shown on television during the newscasts. Several television reporters with a full crew in large vans videoed the Richmond Hill area where tens of thousands of Guyanese reside. Newscasts showed clippings of the Indo-Guyanese community in Richmond Hill which the reporters described as "Little Guyana" because of the large number of Indo-Guyanese settled there.

They also showed Liberty Avenue, the hub of Indo-Guyanese commercial activities.

Detectives have interviewed many of the guests at the reception and according to TV reports they would attempt to speak with others who may provide information leading to the arrest of the gunman. However, one of the detectives is quoted in the newscast as saying that the investigation of the murder would take a long time because of "language barrier". The detective contends Guyanese do not speak English; indeed, many of the guests interviewed spoke very poorly in Guyanese country creole and appeared to come across as illiterate.

Police held one Guyanese man, going by the name Anand, for questioning; eyewitnesses identify him in the company of the gunman and as being involved in the shooting as well. Witnesses say they overheard Anand telling the gunman: "Shoot him! Shoot him!". But the police have released him for the time being until they have questioned reliable witnesses and or spoken with Kevin Persaud.

There are conflicting reports of what really led to the shooting incident. Police say that the gunman had asked a girl at the reception to dance that led to some argument and altercation between him and her date and the gunman may have been punched. Some time later, Abzal, no association with the girl or her boyfriend, inadvertently bumped into the gunman and a little drink fell on the gunman's shirt. "I don't really know what happened. The gunman gave Abzal a very hard look," said one of the eyewitnesses.

Witnesses also said that the gunman may have believed that Abzal was with the group that helped to break up the scuffle and the guy who punched him. "But Abzal was not involved," said one close friend. He adds: "It was a case of mistaken identity. Abzal would not hurt anyone. He never looked for trouble. He is a very quiet guy."

Apparently, Abzal was targeted for shooting. As soon as the victim and his brother Imtiaz and friend Mohammed Pooran left the wedding, the gunman approached Abzal and opened fire.

Viewing of the deceased was held at the Elcock Funeral Home on Liberty Avenue, opposite the Cheddi Jagan Medical Center, which permits relatives to conduct funeral service in their own religious customs. The crowd at the Elcock Funeral Home spilled over onto the sidewalks. The solemn atmosphere and the prayer service, reading from the holy Quoran by the learned meiji or imam, was interrupted at times by loud outbursts of wailing and moaning by immediate family members.

In addition to elder brother Imtiaz, the victim is survived by younger brothers Ramzan and Shaneed, sister Bibi, girlfriend of Pooran, father Inshan, former owner of Inshan Khan Butcher Shop on the main road of Bush Lot, and mother Neisha also of Bush lot.

Abzal and his family migrated to New York in 1990. They lived in a rental apartment in Richmond Hill until 1994 when they purchased a private home on 87th. Avenue in Kew Gardens, a middle class residential area. The parents of the deceased are in shock. In an interview with this reporter, they said: "We are trying to recover. We can't believe this happened to us."

A wake was held at the home on 87th. Avenue in Kew Gardens last Monday evening; because of Islamic religious practice which requires rapid internment of the corpse, viewing and funeral rites according to islamic customs were held the following morning at the Elcock Funeral Home in Richmond Hill. The deceased was buried on Long Island in an area where large numbers of Muslim Guyanese are interred. Mourners described him as a most decent young man who will be sadly missed.

Police are soliciting information about the whereabouts of the gunman who eyewitnesses say jumped into the passenger side of a car that sped off that evening. He was last seen Monday late afternoon on Jamaica Avenue and 150th. Street, an area where a large number of Guyanese are settled.


A © page from:
Guyana: Land of Six Peoples