2018 murder of pandit, son: Accused freed after Judge upholds no-case submission

A 34-year-old man accused of murdering a well-known pandit and his son walked out of the Demerara High Court a free man after a Judge upheld a no-case submission made on his behalf by his lawyer.
Earlando Douglas, called “Frass” and “Lando”, had been on trial for the double murder before Justice Jo-Ann Barlow and a mixed 12-member jury. Upon his arraignment, Douglas, of Campbellville, Georgetown, had denied the charge, which alleged that between July 7 and 10, 2018, he murdered 61-year-old Deonarine Liliah and 28-year-old Gopaul Liliah, a businessman.
According to the Police, the crime was committed at the Liliahs’ home at Lot 25 Craig Street, South Half Section G, Campbellville, Georgetown.
Following a no-case submission presented by the defence lawyer, trial Judge Barlow directed the jurors to formally return a verdict of not guilty in favour of Douglas.

It was reported that the father and son were found dead in their home after tenants complained of a stench emanating from their home. Reports are that detectives found the back door ajar.
The young man’s body was reportedly found lying face down on the floor in a pool of blood, with a red jersey wrapped around his head. There were three stab wounds to his back, one each to the left and right-side abdomen, and two to the chest.
His father was found lying on his back in the living room. He was clad in a pair of white long pants and a multicoloured top, while his face was covered with a multi-coloured jersey. He sustained four stab wounds to the front of his abdomen, four to the left side of his abdomen, one to the lower back, and one to the right hip.
Sources close to the investigations had told Guyana Times there were no signs of forced entry.

However, CCTV footage collected from nearby buildings revealed an unidentified man had scaled the fence and entered the premises through a front door. After some time, he was seen leaving the house with two bulky bags and a bucket.
The house was ransacked. Additional information revealed that the pandit, who was also an astrologer, and his son resided in the upper flat of a two-storey wooden-and-concrete building, the lower flat of which was occupied by a 40-year-old home aid worker, their tenant.
The two men were last seen at about 06:00h on Saturday, July 7, 2018 by the tenant, who confirmed that they had spoken to each other. At about 21:00h that night, the tenant said, she was using her landlord’s Wi-Fi when it suddenly went off, and it was around the same time she had heard footsteps in the upper flat of the house.

After three days had elapsed without any sign of the men, the woman became suspicious and went to the Kitty Police Station, where she made a report. She was accompanied by three Police ranks to the premises. It was then the gruesome discovery was made.
The bodies of the two men were already in a state of decomposition, and the cause of death of each was given as multiple stab wounds.