(Trinidad Guardian) Ramdaye Maraj, 74, the mother of Nathan Maraj, 35, whose decapitated body was found in a garbage heap in Port-of-Spain on Wednesday, says her son’s gruesome murder should be a lesson and a wake-up call to all children who are involved in drugs in one way or the other.
Speaking from her home at Harkoo Trace, Las Lomas No 2, yesterday, Maraj said her son lived with her and she last saw him on Monday morning when she had a favourable conversation with him about his use of marijuana.
“I spoke to him many times about smoking marijuana but he would always quarrel with me and say to stop nagging him about it but I still used to talk to him about it and tell him that what he was doing was wrong,” she told the T&T Guardian.
She added: “I grew him up in church and I grew him up knowing right from wrong and he knew. I tried all that I could with him. I am not hiding for him because he is my son but look at what happened to him, if he had only listened to me?
“Just Monday I was talking to him about it and he was actually listening to me and didn’t argue with me for telling him how I feel.”
Maraj’s head was found in a garbage heap near Pall Mall Street, East Dry River, Port-of-Spain, while his body was found in the truck of a white BMW Hatchback parked at the corner of Duncan and Prince Streets.
The T&T Guardian was told the BMW was not registered in Maraj’s name and the owner had already been contacted by investigating officers.
Yesterday, the elder Maraj said her son was the last of eight children and he was the second child she had lost. One of her sons died at the age of 48 from cancer.
She said she believed with the frequent use of marijuana her son became bipolar.
“When he is good, he is so good. He and I always shared a close relationship and he would always want me to go wherever with him. He recently took me to London. He would want to take me to the US and Canada where he have his brother and sister.
“But when he tripped he would trip so bad where he would do extreme things. Recently, he even spray painted the BMW he usually drove. His trip-offs are that bad. I can’t even talk to him when he is in that state of mind,” she said.
Maraj said her son was previously employed at Guardian Life, where he was awarded the “Employee of the Year” about four years ago. His last place of employment was at Maritime but she said he had not been working for the past several months.
Asked whether or not she believed her son’s murder was connected to the Mexican drug cartel operating in T&T, Maraj replied:
“I am only hearing about this in the news but I feel that maybe he was killed because he had no money to pay for the marijuana.
“He has not been working for the past months and I feel he probably was taking the drugs, taking it, taking it, taking it and because he was not paying for it they killed him but I do not know for sure and can only think that.”
Asked if her son not only used marijuana but sold it, Maraj replied: “I do not know. Simply because I know he would smoke marijuana because he told me that he has been using it since he was in high school, but he would never smoke it in front of me or anyone that he knew or was close with. So to say whether or not he sold drugs, I cannot say because I do not know.”
A close neighbour, who wished not to be identified, described Maraj as a respectable young man.
“If he could help somebody he would never hesitate to do so. He would never pass anyone on the road who was waiting for transportation.
“He was always so humble when he was good and not when he would trip off. When he was calm he would give his life for his mother,” the neighbour added.
A close friend of Maraj, who also wished not to be identified, said he was shocked when he got the horrid news.
“I knew he would smoke marijuana but I don’t expect to hear that he would have been killed and to top it off to be killed in such a manner where his head would be cut off. That’s terrible, man. He would have never done anything so wrong to anybody to be given a death like that.”
