As investigations continue into the ghastly murder of 18-year-old Qualfon receptionist Raynelle Benfield, the five suspects, including her boyfriend, remain in custody. This was confirmed by Police in C Division (East Coast Demerara) late Tuesday who indicated that all avenues were being pursued even as the suspects were still being held.
Dead: Raynelle Benfield
Investigators are working on the theory that the teen might have been sexually assaulted before her face was bashed in with a heavy object, believed to be a stone. The teen’s relatives were on Monday questioned by investigators about her social life and acquaintances which prompted ranks to visit the homes of several young men in the area. According to reports reaching Guyana Times, the boyfriend, a suspected gang member, had dated a female relative of Benfield in the recent past and a falling out had occurred over this issue.
Benfield, of Lot 99 Canterbury Walk, Beterverwagting, East Coast Demerara, was discovered in a nearby Muslim cemetery around 07:00h Monday with her face completely disfigured. It is believed that Benfield was sexually assaulted as her hands were resting on her chest while the pair of jeans she was wearing was pulled to her knees.
This newspaper was told that the teen left home on Saturday morning for work and after she did not return home that evening, her relatives were under the impression that she was working overtime. They, however, received a call informing them that her body was found in the cemetery. Her colleagues stated that they last saw her around 18:00h on Saturday.
The death of the young woman follows a recent string of homicides of young females. Earlier this month, a guard confessed to killing 23-year-old waitress Marrisa Fraser, whose partially nude body was discovered a short distance from a pool of blood, in a canal at Number Five Village, West Coast Berbice.
Additionally, 47-year-old taxi driver Matthew Munroe was arraigned this month for allegedly killing Richard Ishmael school teacher Kescia Branche, who was discovered in an unconscious state on the morning of November 5 in the vicinity of Princes Street and Louisa Row, Georgetown. A post-mortem conducted showed that Branche died of haemorrhaging due to blunt trauma to the head. (Shemuel Fanfair)
