- A peaceful march planned for this Sunday in tribute to the little girl
The laughter of Kathalea, 7, echoes in her head. His bright smile, his joy of life. “Li enn zanfan kontan zwe, bien gayar”, confides Kinsley Gaspard, his voice knotted. No, this father could never have imagined losing, in such atrocious circumstances, his little “princess”.
The girl’s lifeless body was discovered in the early hours of Saturday, November 30, in fallow land in Bain-des-Dames. She was sexually assaulted and killed by the former partner of one of her aunts, Jean Alan Ramborough (see below).
Kinsley cannot erase from his mind the horror that his daughter Kathalea experienced in the hands of her executioner. “Selma seki sa dimounn-la inn iron, linn bien fer m tififi sufer. Pa pou kav bliye…” he confides, bruised to the depths of his being.
He says that Kathalea spent a few days with her maternal grandmother in Cassis. “Toulezour depi li ti kot so granmer, mo al get li. » The little girl, he said, loved motorcycle rides. “Li ti kontan mo fer li promenne lor motosiklet. »
Her little sister keeps looking for her, we tell her Kathalea is sleeping”
Kinsley shares his last moments with his “princess” Kathalea. It was Friday, November 29, late in the afternoon. Kathalea, her sisters and cousins were playing. The little girl had wanted at all costs to go on a motorcycle tour with her father. The other children present wanted to do the same. “Koumadir lao-la mem inn fer mwa pass plis letan ar motifi sa zour-la,” he murmurs. After a motorcycle ride, he then took the little girl to buy ice cream and played with her before leaving.
But Kinsley could not have imagined that these were the last moments he spent with his little Kathalea, a little girl full of life and joy. Before he left that day, Kinsley says Kathalea had shown a special attachment. “Li pa ti pe anvi mo ale, li pe res dir mwa ‘papa mo vinn ar twa, amenn mwa’. » The devastated father confides that he had planned to take Kathalea to his home in Albion on Saturday. “We have a plan to bring the Albion Saturday,” Kinsley told Le Dimanche/L’Hebdo.
It was in the evening, shortly after his departure, that Kinsley was informed of his daughter’s disappearance. “Apenn monn finished going out laba, mo ale, mo gagn ‘call’ dir mwa pa pe found mo tifi. » It was around 5 a.m. that Kathalea’s lifeless body was discovered, in fallow land in Bain-des-Dames, Cassis.
Jean Alan Ramborough was arrested by the Criminal Investigation Division (CID) of Port-Louis South in the early hours of Saturday November 30. After providing a confession, he led police to the scene where the body was located. He is currently in detention for kidnapping, sexual abuse of a minor, and murder.
A week after this tragedy which shocked the entire country, the Gaspards are struggling to overcome their grief. “Li ti konn li, li al ar li fasil laboutik, get ki linn fer sa zanfan-la”, they are indignant. Kinsley is a broken man. He explains that everyone who knows him questions him about the facts: “Tou dimounn res koz samem avec mwa kan pe trouv mwa. »
Kathalea’s brother and sisters are asking for her. The little girl had a younger sister, a brother, and another sister, the youngest of four children. “Bann zanfan-la, seki gran-la li kone. » As for the youngest, Kinsley says he tries as best he can to convince her that Kathalea is sleeping. “So ti-ser res rod li, nou dir li Kathalea pe slept. »
Peaceful march this Sunday
To pay tribute to Kathalea Gaspard, who died in tragic circumstances, her parents and loved ones are organizing a peaceful march this Sunday, December 8 at 9 a.m. The gathering will take place in front of the Cassis church, before heading towards the place where the child’s body was discovered, covered with leaves.
Candlelight ceremony in tribute to little Kathalea
A ceremony in tribute to little Kathalea, victim of a heinous crime in Bain-des-Dames, was held last evening at the Plaza. Relatives, friends, social workers, personalities and Mauritians in general gathered for a moment of contemplation.
