MADURAI: After 78 days of agony following the terrible death of a 31-year-old man N Vignesh, his body returned from Jamaica to his native place in Tirunelveli on Tuesday.
The victim’s relatives were in tears as they mourned upon the arrival of his body.
Unfortunately, Vignesh succumbed to gunshot wounds when an armed gang barged into the food mart in Jamaica, where he was employed, on December 17 last year.
The gang stepped inside the mart with the intent to loot. When the ill-fated victim Vignesh along with two fellow workers attempted to prevent them, the gang opened fire at them. While Vignesh succumbed to gunshot wounds on the spot, his fellow workers including Pandi and Sudalai suffered gunshot wounds and were hospitalised in the wake of the incident.
After learning about the tragic incident, the aggrieved relatives sought help from government authorities to bring back his body from Jamaica, Africa, for burial.
C Robert Bruce, Tirunelveli MP, M Abdul Wahab, Palayamkottai MLA, Mayor of Tirunelveli G. Ramakrishnan and others paid homage on the occasion.
The Tirunelveli MP told reporters that efforts were made continuously through the Indian embassy to bring back the body. More importantly, Bruce said he met Chief Minister Stalin, sought his assistance and the CM had set aside funds of Rs 18 lakh. He also thanked the External Affairs Ministry for its support.
After the last rites were performed the body was cremated at the electric crematorium in Sindhupunthurai.