Archives for September 6, 2016

Cummings Lodge murder

– Police hunt accomplice

Police are on the verge of cracking yet another murder case as the nephew of Anita Mohan, whose battered body was found on the floor of her kitchen, has confessed to murdering the 48-year-old woman on Sunday afternoon.

The house in which the woman’s body was found

Mohan’s body was found lying in a pool of blood on the floor of her kitchen in her Lot 315 Fifth Street, Cummings Lodge home with her head bashed in and a stab wound to her chest. A bloody rolling pin, suspected to be one of the murder weapons, was found in close proximity, as well as a broken beer bottle.

Acting Crime Chief Hugh Jessemy, when contacted, told Guyana Times that the young man has confessed to the murder, while admitting that another person acted as his accomplice. The murder, according to Jessemy, might have stemmed from a robbery.

The Crime Chief noted that detectives revisited the murder scene on Monday to conduct further investigations. It is believed that after committing the heinous act, the now dead woman’s nephew, who is called “Chucky”, might have washed the blood from his clothes.

A wet pair of three-quarter pants was found in the washing area – the same pants he was believed to be wearing during his drinking spree on the day the woman was brutally murdered.

However, when Guyana Times visited the area on Monday morning, the dead woman’s sister, Rosita Sarabjeet, explained that the suspect started to consume alcohol from around 09:00h and had been playing the music system very loudly.

“He bin ah de only one in the house with meh sister on Sunday… we couldn’t hear anything because the music de deh pon all…” the woman stated.

When the woman’s son returned home from work, he found his mother’s motionless body lying on the ground and raised an alarm.

Sarabjeet noted that she was at home when she heard her sister’s son shouting for them. She initially thought her sister had fainted, since she suffered from hypertension, but as she entered the house, she saw her sister’s battered body.

The devastated woman noted that it was too graphic to look at her sister in that state. She recalled that on Sunday evening, the main suspect went to another sister’s home to spend the night – something he had never done before.

Later, they realised that he might have been the culprit. As they confronted him, he picked up a knife and ran towards the back, calling out for “Rambo”. “He run and call for Rambo… and saying that Rambo do that to he aunty,” the sister related.

It was due to his outburst that Police arrested him and treated him as the main suspect up until his confession. When asked about the person identified as “Rambo”, Sarabjeet explained that he and the suspect had an issue, which led to the involvement of his now dead aunt.

The matter was reported and “Rambo” had reportedly threatened to “wipe out the family”. Nevertheless, the grieving sister noted that the now dead woman’s bedroom was ransacked and the money she kept in her wardrobe was missing.

Family members have also confirmed that “Chucky” was in the habit of smoking. “Is smoke up, he had to smoke up and kill de poor lady who work hard for what she want,” a relative stated.

An aunt of the dead woman told Guyana Times that she was at church when she received a phone call from her husband about the dreadful discovery. She immediately left and hurriedly made her way to the scene. There, she recalled, seeing her niece on the floor and blood everywhere.

“Like she de going and eat, she food left just so on the cupboard… the belnah with blood went right deh and a bottle went next to she head,” the woman added.

The now dead woman would buy and sell greens and vegetables for a living. Her only son works seven days a week to assist his mother so that they can live a comfortable life. A post-mortem examination is expected on Wednesday. (Bhisham Mohamed)

The National Communications Network (NCN) has rejected outright media reports that it has been meddling in the personal affairs of two of its female staff, who have recently been making headlines at the State-run entity.

On Monday, NCN said that it was very much concerned about statements being made in the press and online news outlets in relation to employment issues surrounding two of its employees, Natasha Smith and Jocelle Archibald-Hawk.

Sports Editor
Jocelle Archibald-Hawk

NCN anchor Natasha Smith

CEO Lennox Cornette

The State media outlet said it wished to make it known that Smith, an anchor, was not removed from anchoring duties because of her pregnancy or marital status.

“NCN upholds the rights of all its employees in relation to their private lives and may only be required to address aspects of personal issues if they impede the employee’s performance on the job,” the organisation stated in a release Monday evening.

The organisation came under fire after word got out that it had removed Smith, one of its longstanding anchors from reading the news because she was pregnant out of wedlock, a claim the entity has denied.

Meanwhile, Smith also in a response on Monday gave her side of the story.

According to her, almost a month ago, she was informed by a senior manager that it was decided that she would be relieved of reading the news.

“On the following day I was called by another senior manager who explained to me how outraged he was about what was said in the management meeting of August 8. He told me he believes that as a woman I have a right to become pregnant and bear a child without it being a hindrance to my job since being pregnant does not affect my job in any way.”

She said she was called to the office of the Editor-In-Chief (EIC) the following day, and it was explained that she would be relieved of reading the news, “because, quite frankly, the CEO did not like what he sees when he looks at the news”.

“She told me that she was given a directive to remove me from reading the news in a management meeting on August 8 because the ‘image’ was not looking good for the news. I enquired if it had anything to do with my pregnancy, she did not respond to the question directly, but asked me to wear bigger clothes. She said the directive came from the CEO and she is just following instructions.”

Smith, who has been employed by the State entity for over eight years, has been serving for some six years in the News and Current Affairs Department and two years as an Announcer/Producer in the Production Department. She said this was not her first time anchoring the news while pregnant.

“This is my second pregnancy while being anchor. In 2011, I was pregnant with twins and there was never any issue with regards to my anchoring or attire, nor any directive to cameramen to shoot from my breast upwards,” she wrote to colleagues.

She continued: “Given the fact that I have to hide a part of my body, makes him seem like something unwanted or to be ashamed of. I likened the situation to one where I took a picture with my child and had to Photoshop him out of the picture.”

Smith said she was very much offended and immediately contacted her union representative, who arranged a meeting with the Human Resources Manager (HRM).

“The HRM did not deny that the directive was given, but insisted that it was not with immediate effect and that the EIC is misrepresenting what was said.”

Smith said she was later informed that there was a new directive for her to continue reading the news until she was ready to proceed on maternity leave; however, she said by this time she had already decided that she would discontinue reading the news because of all that transpired.

Meanwhile, NCN speaking on the issue of Sports Editor Jocelle Archibald-Hawk, who was suspended for one month without pay, said due process was followed in arriving at its decision.

“While the current issue is about disparaging comments made on social media about her colleague’s work and name calling, several other factors and incidents involving Mrs Archibald-Hawk were considered. NCN will not descend into divulging the details about personnel matters in the public domain,” it said in its release.

CEO Lennox Cornette said that it was unfortunate that the issues surrounding the employees have been misunderstood and misrepresented. In the case of Archibald-Hawk, he expressed surprise that “a simple HR matter that was investigated and dealt with, after a report by the aggrieved party has now elevated itself on social media as a denial of freedom of expression.”

– NDC launches investigation

Residents of Atlantic Gardens are peeved at what appears to be the unlawful establishment of a ‘junkyard’ at Lot 169 Azalea Avenue, Atlantic Gardens, East Coast Demerara.

Parked trucks in Atlantic Gardens

Guyana Times recently visited the location and saw what appeared to be several dilapidated heavy-duty trucks parked on the Government reserve precariously close to the main roadway and old rotted truck cabins, trays, chassis and other vehicular parts on the once lush green plot.

One visibly upset resident explained that he managed to get the Overseer of the La Bonne Intention/Better Hope Neighbourhood Democratic Council (NDC), Shevonne Savory, to visit the site and inspect the operations.

He related that the Overseer confirmed that what was occurring was illegal and the NDC would take steps to have the operations removed.

More than a month later, the situation has gotten worse.

Residents are peeved at the eyesore the business has become, the apparent loss of affluence and value in their properties, as some even questioned whether Atlantic Gardens was still a residential area.

Other residents took the opportunity to lambaste the NDC for not fulfilling its mandate of collecting garbage, weeding the drains and for turning a blind eye to littering in addition to condoning this disgrace.

Upon enquiry, one resident mentioned that the owner of the property upon which the operations was established was only known as “Fat Man” and he owned a spare parts dealership situated opposite Apex School on the Public Road.

Residents are claiming that the ‘junkyard’ would become a haven for thieves and animals, had the potential to be a public health hazard by adding to already unsanitary conditions, while polluting the environment with rubbish, which was already evident on the southern parapet, as well as obstruct traffic and pose a fire hazard through the use of welding torches to cut the metal.

The daily traversing of heavy-duty vehicles was seen as bringing further destruction to the already severely potholed roads and damaged parapets.

Damage to the parapets was clearly visible when Guyana Times visited, as heavy machinery was rolling upon the reserves to manipulate their overweight and over-sized cargo into position.

Investigations

The Overseer who initially visited the site and suspected the operations to be illegal has resigned from her post with the NDC.

NDC Chairman Zamin Shaw, when contacted, explained that an investigation was ongoing into the matter and assured residents that all steps were being taken to address the issue.

Shaw said the NDC was unable to ascertain the owner of the property; however, a notice to clear the roadways was dispatched to a caretaker who often visited the property.

Currently, the NDC is awaiting a response.

Moreover, the Chairman said he was in the process of seeking advice from technical personnel on how to proceed with the matter, since not much substantial information has been gathered on the operations.

Residents of the Essequibo island of Leguan were left without electricity after a brief but violent storm hit the island on Sunday afternoon.

Downed poles caused a widespread power outage on the island. Electricity was only restored on Monday afternoon

Reports indicated that the storm hit the island’s front section just before 16:00h, with lightning, thunder, heavy rains and “circular” winds, which ripped off the roofs of several buildings and downed several large trees in the area. Additionally, two Guyana Power and Light (GPL) electricity poles were knocked down, which resulted in the power outage on the island.

No injuries were recorded, but residents were said to have been quite shaken up by the tumultuous weather. Guyana Times was told that power was restored to the island around 14:00h on Monday. Water service was also restored after briefly being disrupted.

The incidence of unsettling weather has been recently increasing. It was around 11:00h on Friday last that heavy rains and winds battered parts of the East and West Banks of Demerara, slowing vehicular traffic for about 30 minutes. (Shemuel Fanfair)

The Mandir was not spared the storm’s ferocity