3 years later: Family still waiting for justice for mother of 2 killed at home

By Solomon Mc Garrell

It has been three excruciating years since the life of nurse/midwife Paulette Thom-Wade was snuffed out on the night of October 25, 2018 at her home in Kwakwani Park, Upper Berbice River; and family members and two young children left behind ae still awaiting justice.

Wade, who was an employed at the Kwakwani Hospital Complex, was killed while her six-year-old daughter and her younger son were in the house. The children awoke to an unusually dark home on the night of October 25, 2018 and to the sounds of their mom being involved in what seemed to be a scuffle in their room.
The six-year-old child managed to observe a male, reportedly dark in complexion, attacking her mother, but the fearful six-year-old remained tucked in the bed until the next morning, when she saw her mother lying motionless on the floor.
Traumatised by the sight of her dead mother, the brave six-year-old rushed out of the home and went to the next-door neighbour and related what had occurred.
Neighbours and colleagues at the Kwakwani Hospital Complex rushed to the scene, but Wade was already dead.
Speaking with Guyana Times, Wade’s youngest sibling, Raynard Thom, said the family believe the Guyana Police Force has met a dead end in the investigations and would give the family a ‘royal run around’ whenever they contact the local authorities.

“Over two years now the Police have not made contact with the family; nothing of the sort. Due to the elections and so, they say they are very busy, so they just left the case like that,” the despondent Thom said.
Several persons have been arrested in connection with the murder, but they were subsequently released as the case remains unsolved.
Wade was described by her family and the entire community of Kwakwani as a beautiful, peaceful person who always had a pleasant personality, and a friendly woman who was well respected in the community. Wade was also an ardent Adventist churchgoer who was embedded in the faith as a small girl growing up in Kimbia, a small village in the Upper Berbice River.
The grieving brother said his sister’s death is a great loss for the community, and family members are always heartbroken every October as they remember her, knowing that her killer is still roaming free.
“Over the past few years, every time October comes around is a very sad month for the Thom family, as well as the community at large, because losing a loved one like that was very bad for the family. She was so kind and genuine to everyone. Everyone is very hurt because of what transpired,” the disheartened brother related.Being a woman of that stature, it was shocking and most hurtful to her parents to wrap their minds around the way the life of their daughter had been snuffed out by a heartless individual who remains scot free.
Left to mourn are Wade’s husband, nine-year-old daughter and six-year-old son. Wade’s brother has said it’s hard for his niece and nephew, because it’s like they are now without both parents, since their father is in the interior most times working to provide for them.
“Well, it is very stressful for them, because they are living without a mother right now, and almost without a father, because the father mostly be at work doing his thing trying to provide for them. So is almost like they are living without parents,” Raynard said.
Family members of Paulette Wade are calling on the Guyana Police Force to investigate the matter “more seriously”, and the family’s heart will be at ease when the perpetrator/s of her murder is/are brought to justice.