HE LOVED CHRISTMAS

PLANS by Nigel Allen to go into business in the new year were cut short by his brutal murder. Mourners heard yesterday during Allen’s funeral service at the Our Lady of Perpetual Help RC Church in San Fernando that 2006 would have been a turning point for Allen. Allen, a mechanic of Simpson Brown Terrace, Cocoyea, disappeared on December 7. His black B-13 Nissan Sentra was reportedly found near the Forres Park dumpsite in Claxton Bay, and on Monday his body was discovered in a shallow grave in Claxton Bay. Hours before Allen’s funeral at Harris Promenade, two men appeared at the San Fernando Magistrates’ Court, opposite the service, on a charge of murdering Allen.

Allen’s three nieces — Kristal Allen, Katrina and Rointra Hosein — mustered the courage to deliver their uncle’s eulogy. They described Allen as a storyteller who often, to enhance his many tales, made up the contents. He was also described as a lover of Christmas. “He was a very jolly uncle. He would have everyone rolling with laughter. He also loved to put up Christmas decorations, not for himself, but for everyone in his family,” Katrina said. Hundreds of mourners gathered at the church to pay their last respects as Allen’s sealed wooden casket was rolled up the church’s aisle to the altar. He was the twin brother of Nathalie and brother of seven others. After the funeral service, Allen was laid to rest at Roodal Cemetery, Broadway, San Fernando.