Mom fears for her girls after arson attack

“I am scared for my daughters. They are too young to die.” These were the words of 24-year-old Anika Sealey, hours after a relative reportedly set fire to her Morne Diablo home, leaving her and five others homeless. Police said the fire started around 10 pm, destroying the entire building, which was valued $120,000. No one was at home when the fire started. Firefighters arrived in time to stop it from spreading to an adjoining house.

Sealey, who was staying at her grandmother’s home along with her children, said she was scared the arsonist would strike again. As she stood amidst the ruins, Sealey begged police to offer protection to her and her two children—Shamiah, eight, and 16-month-old Sheriah.

Sealey said for the past two weeks she had been getting death threats from a man she met four months ago. She claimed that the accused had been walking around with a gun, threatening to kill her and her two girls. Shaking with fear, Sealey said the suspect hit her on the head with a bottle when he saw her walking in San Fernando last week.

On Tuesday, Sealey said she went to the Siparia Police Station to ask for a protection order but was not given one. “The police told me that they only grant protection orders for people who know each other for over a year. They gave me a paper to come back in two months.

“I told them that the man could kill me within two months,” Sealey recalled. She accused the police of not taking the issue seriously. “Now that he burnt down my house, I want the police to intervene,” Sealey added. Rayan Springer, who lives next door, said it was lucky nobody was in the house at the time. She said the building burned down within ten minutes.

“If those children were in the house, they would have surely died,” Springer said. Police visited the scene yesterday and took statements. A manhunt has since been launched for the suspect.