The body of a 14-year-old girl was on Tuesday afternoon discovered floating in a canal at Hope, East Coast
Malika Hamilton
Demerara (ECD), one day after she went missing.
Malika Hamilton of Lot 11 Two Friends Village, ECD, a student of the Hope Secondary School, went missing on Monday.
Reports are the young woman was last seen in the company of two boys late Monday afternoon. However, she failed to return home and her family members launched a search.
The teen’s mother, Latisha Cambridge, told this publication that she last saw her daughter around 06:00h on Monday before she left for work.
Cambridge explained that when she returned home, her daughter was not there, which was not strange as she would usually visit her grandmother, who lived in Hope, a neighbouring community.
The bereaved mother explained that she received a call later that evening from her niece, who told her that the teen did not show up to get her hair done as was scheduled. Then, around 22:00h, her mother called and disclosed that Hamilton could not be found.
Guyana Times was told that relatives of the young woman gathered and a search was launched in the neighbouring communities, but they came up empty handed.
“I was really worried, because Malika don’t sleep out,” the distraught mother said.
She further explained that on Tuesday morning, she went to the Police Station and reported the matter.
The grieving mother told this newspaper that she was met by persons who told her that Hamilton was seen in the vicinity of the canal.
“So we then went over to Hope where the canal is located and we searched but we did not find no body or anything like that, but when I came over back here, that is when somebody call me and told me that they found a body.”
Cambridge said that after the ghastly discovery, she has received different versions as to what her daughter did before her death.
She said she was told that Hamilton reportedly left with friends to go swimming, but she noted that the young woman could not swim.
She also received reports from the boys in whose company Hamilton was seen that they took the young woman by the canal after she said that she was going to visit her grandmother.
According to the man who discovered the girl’s body, identified only as “Buck”, he was heading up to the Savannah area where the canal ended when he made the discovery.
He noted that earlier in the day, he traversed the very area, but Hamilton’s body was not there.
Wails and screams were heard as family members gathered and Hamilton’s bloated body was pulled from the canal by public-spirited persons. The circumstances surrounding the young woman’s demise are yet to be determined.
However, her family is adamant that her death was as a result of foul play.
Hamilton, one of five siblings, is described as a vibrant young girl who was rebellious at times. She was Queen of the 2015 Ann’s Grove Calabash and second runner-up at this year’s pageant.
An investigation has been launched into her death by the Police.
