Trini bashes Brooklyn thief

A TRINIDADIAN churchgoing ironworker has admitted that he was defending himself when, according to police, he bashed a would-be burglar over the head with a two-by-four in Brooklyn on Sunday. Police released Mongo Kenyada, 54, the owner of Ethiopian Ironworks in Brownsville, without charging him in the confrontation that left Steven Booker, 51, in the hospital with critical head injuries. Kenyada told the New York Daily News yesterday the frightening encounter happened just before 8 am on Sunday when he went to investigate noises in the yard outside his shop’s office on Sackman Street. “I heard a noise, something like a bang. So I went to the door and peeked through a hole, but I didn’t see anyone,” said Kenyada, explaining that he routinely goes to his shop before church on Sunday mornings to go online and read the newspaper from his native Trinidad. “Five minutes later, I heard the noise again, then again, then again,” he said.

He walked out and saw a man stealing copper wire from the back of his pick-up truck parked in the shop’s yard, which is sealed off from the street by a ten-foot-high iron fence. Kenyada, who has owned his Brooklyn business since 1985, said that when he slammed his office door, he startled the would-be thief, who he said responded, “I guess I’m busted.” But instead of giving up, Booker allegedly picked up a piece of wood. Kenyada, who must testify before a grand jury about the incident, would only say he defended himself. Cops said Kenyada picked up a two-by-four and whacked Booker in the head during a struggle. Friends — including his pastor, the Rev Jackie Allen of the New Revive Faith and Hope Ministry in Brooklyn — said they believe Kenyada. “He’s a wonderful man. A very good person,” said Allen. “He always helps out at the church.” Martin Claudio, 41, who once worked for Kenyada, added, “He’s a very peaceful guy. He doesn’t have a gun. He doesn’t have any weapons in there. So he just did what he had to do.”