Senior Reporter
kevon.felmine@guardian.co.tt
“Go back to your room,” Babita Vialva and her killer told her 19-year-old daughter seconds before gunshots rang out yesterday morning in a shocking double murder in Penal.
The teen was left inconsolable after stepping out of her bedroom at their Penal Rock Road home to find her mother, Babita, 41, and her father, Shaffeak “Shamboy” Vialva, 52, bleeding from gunshot wounds. While homicide investigators have yet to confirm a motive, a dispute over logging rights is among the angles being pursued.
According to police reports, the couple and their daughter were asleep when the teen was jolted awake by two loud explosions. As she exited her room, she saw her father sitting in a pool of blood outside his bedroom. She then looked into her parents’ room and saw a man standing at the doorway, repeatedly demanding money from Babita.
As the suspect and Babita spoke, both instructed the teen to return to her room. Moments later, she heard two more gunshots. When she looked again, her mother was lying motionless with blood streaming from her head.
Babita died at the scene. Shaffeak was taken by ambulance to the San Fernando General Hospital, where he later died.
Guardian Media understands that Shaffeak, who operated a Timberjack, worked for a company that recently acquired logging rights on land in Mathura approved for quarrying. There had reportedly been a recent fallout with a competitor over these rights. Relatives said threats had been made, and they believe the murders may be connected. Homicide detectives and South Western Division officers confirmed that the investigation remains active. Both Vialvas were described as decent, law-abiding citizens with no known involvement in suspicious activity.
A neighbour told Guardian Media he awoke around 2.50 am and saw a vehicle enter the Vialvas’ yard. He reported seeing a man banging on the door and calling out to Shaffeak. As the homeowner approached, the intruder demanded money before gunshots rang out.
“Three shots. I went upstairs, got my phone and called his sister to come. There were people, ambulances, everything ... I saw the husband lying on the ground, bleeding, and then I saw the mummy there. She was dead, lying down,” the resident said.
He said he found Shaffeak by the side door, while Babita lay a short distance away in the corridor. He added that the teen initially believed someone had fallen.
“She was sleeping and heard something—she thought somebody fell. When she got up, she saw her father on the ground bleeding. She called me, telling me to come fast.”
The neighbour described the couple as “good people” who did honest work. Penal/Debe Regional Corporation chairman Gowtam Maharaj said the corporation will support the family, work with the police, and continue efforts to prevent similar crimes.
Babita’s younger brother, Ragim Madoo, said he rushed from Biche as soon as he heard the news, but by the time he arrived, the bodies had already been removed. He said the couple had been together for 19 years and had no issues.
“There was no robbery in the house. The house wasn’t ransacked, and they went their way,” Madoo said.
“She was not troublesome. The two of them were always together. She would go to work with him, come back. They never had any problem. I want to see something come out of this, because innocent people are just going down for nothing. This man—you could ask anybody about Shamboy—no problem.”
He also urged police to increase patrols, noting that his extended family of 16 had previously been victims of an arson attack.
