Priest advised — ‘think it over’

Only a few days before she was hacked to death by her husband, 32-year-old Gilliam Rajpaul confided in her family’s priest that she was concerned her life might have been in danger. The woman reportedly wanted to leave her matrimonial home, but was told by Fr Rudy Mohammed of St Dominic’s Roman Catholic Church, Penal, to “think it over”.

Yesterday, Fr Mohammed told Newsday he had counselled Rajpaul and her husband, 41-year-old Glen, mere days before Glen chopped his wife to death, then set ablaze their house at Ramjattan Trace, Penal, and hanged himself inside the burning building. According to Fr Mohammed, it was only recently that Glen Rajpaul visited the church and admitted he was having domestic problems with his wife. The priest said one month ago the couple had a prayer service at their home, which Glen described as “a turning point in his life”. Recently, Fr Mohammed said, Rajpaul stated he wanted to change his life so he could be “a better father and husband”.

However, this past weekend Rajpaul admitted he was still having marital problems with which he could no longer cope. According to Fr Mohammed, he told Rajpaul to “take things easy and relax”, promising that he (Mohammed) would speak with Gillian and that he would arrange to have the couple receive professional marriage counselling. Fr Mohammed said he later telephoned Gillian Rajpaul to “talk to her about the situation”. It was during that telephone conversation, the priest told Newsday, the woman indicated that she feared for her safety. “She kept saying she was afraid of him and that he kept threatening her,” Fr Mohammed said. It was only at this point, he said, he realised how serious the couple’s problems were. Until then, he said, he didn’t think their problems were “that bad”. Fr Mohammed said he promised Gillian, as well, that he would arrange to have a counsellor visit her and her husband, so they could try to resolve their differences. “She was upset and wanted to leave home and I told her to think it over,” he told Newsday.

According to Fr Mohammed, he next saw Glen Rajpaul on Tuesday morning inside the church. He said he approached Rajpaul, who was singing and concentrating deeply on the prayer service. The priest said Rajpaul’s mother was also present and the man seemed “perfectly normal” and didn’t appear to have any kinds of problems on his mind. Fr Mohammed said he advised Rajpaul that in all marriages people take each other for granted, kept things locked up inside until it reaches a point where it breaks. All the while, Fr Mohammed recalled, Rajpaul kept answering “yes, yes”. Rajpaul, Fr Mohammed said, was also advised to “keep it under wraps” and that he shouldn’t frighten his wife. The priest said he again raised the subject of counselling for the couple and Rajpaul seemed interested.

According to Fr Mohammed, he left Rajpaul inside the church to attend to another matter. It was while returning to the church to meet Rajpaul, Fr Mohammed said, someone called out to him to indicate that Rajpaul had killed his wife and committed suicide. The priest said he was surprised by the turn of events, going so far to describe Rajpaul as “a very nice man”.