Black Bush Polder couple brutally murdered, home set on fire during invasion

– 22-year-old reportedly confesses, several others in Police custody

By Andrew Carmichael

The quiet village of Yakusari, Black Bush Polder in Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne) has been rocked by the brutal murder of an elderly couple, which occurred in the wee hours of Tuesday, January 17. Dead are 59-year-old Sarasauti Devi Budraj, called ‘Seeta’, and her husband, 67-year-old Subnath Budraj, called ‘Bull Boy’, of Lot 26 Community Zone, South Yakusari, BBP.
Their bodies were found in the lower flat of their home at just after 4:00h on Tuesday. It is believed that they were robbed before being murdered, and then their home was set alight by the perpetrators. They were the parents of four children, who are all overseas.
When Guyana Times visited the scene, neighbours recalled being awakened by a loud explosion, and upon investigating, they observed the couple’s home on fire.
Neighbours formed a bucket brigade and were able to put out the blaze, which had already destroyed a section of the house. In an effort to rescue the couple, they broke into the burning building, only to find their bodies in pools of blood.

“Me hold the torchlight, and dem boys get the buckets dipping water from the trench, and they throwing it to out the fire,” a resident explained.
The couple operated a wholesale beverage business from their home. From all indications, the fire was set in the storage bond, but by the time the fire tenders arrived, the blaze had already been contained by the residents. However, Regional Police Commander Shivpersaud Bacchus confirmed that the husband was found in the liquor store, while his wife was found in the living area. A knife was reportedly stuck in the man’s neck, while several stab wounds were found on the woman’s body.

Satish Persaud, nephew of the woman, recalled receiving news at about 4:15h that his aunt’s house was on fire, and he said that as he arrived at the scene, villagers were battling the blaze.
Persaud said the entire upper flat was ransacked, and, upon checking, he realised that cash and jewellery were missing. However, he could not say how much money has gone missing.
“Is big-business people; they get a liquor restaurant, an off-licence liquor business, and they are a distributor for all DDL (products), so they does do a lot of business,” Persaud noted.

There are reports that the couple, or at least one of them, was making preparations to leave the country soon.
Nevertheless, the Commander said Police were able to secure the building as the investigation commenced.
“What we do know that we have on our hands is two bodies. The building was set on fire, I am of the perception it was done with the view to derail us, the investigators, from what we are looking at,” the Commander told reporters at the crime scene on Tuesday morning.
At the Yakusari Market, situated two buildings away, Police found traces of blood. A mobile phone was found in the vicinity.
Meanwhile, a 22-year-old man from South Yakusari is among four persons arrested and being interrogated. Guyana Times was told that the young man has confessed to committing the heinous crime. During his confession, he reportedly told detectives that murdering the couple was not the perpetrators’ initial intention.
“We went there not to kill them, but we had to, because they would ah identify we, because they see us. We had to do wat we had to do to erase the evidence,” the suspect reportedly told Police.
He has also implicated a 27-year-old resident.
In relation to the fire, the Commander related that investigators were told that after killing the couple, the perpetrators turned on the gas cylinder, and lit paper and placed it around the room. That caused the explosion which was heard by residents. Investigations are continuing.