Crane woman murdered in home

– ex-lover in custody

Police in D Division (West Bank Demerara-East Bank Essequibo) have arrested two suspects following the

murder of a Crane, West Coast Demerara (WCD) woman, who was found with several stab wounds about her body.

The dead woman has been identified as Latchminie Shurpugan, called “Radika”; a security guard of Lot 3233 Crane Housing Scheme, WCD.

Guyana Times understands that the woman, who lives alone, was found in a pool of blood in her kitchen when Police responded to reports on Monday night. She reportedly sustained two stab wounds – one to her right hand and the other to her right foot – along with abrasions about her body.

According to reports, Shurpugan was heard screaming in her bottom flat one bedroom apartment sometime around 22:00h on Monday. The Police was alerted but before they arrived, a male was seen exiting the apartment.

The perpetrator reportedly jumped the fence and made good his escape, this newspaper was told. However, on Tuesday morning investigators arrested two persons who are in custody assisting with the investigations. One of the suspects had shared a common-law relationship with the deceased but the union ended early in May.

The woman, who lives in the upper flat of the house told this publication that on the night in question, she and Shurpugan had a conversation something around 21:00h and everything seems fine before they went to their respective apartments a few minutes after.

“Sometime later, she called for me like normal but I was on the phone so I didn’t answer but like about half an hour after, she shouted “ow my god na do that” and then there was a loud knocking on the door as if the person knock her into the door,” the neighbour related, while adding that “she (Shurpugan) screamed for me twice so I got up from bed and called out for her but she didn’t respond; so then I called her landline phone but there was no answer still and then I call the station.”

The woman said that she stayed up waiting to hear if there was any sound coming from the bottom flat and after about 30 minutes, someone opened the door. “The person that was in there, came out and just blew their nose, jumped the fence and get away,” she recalled.

The still traumatised woman further explained that she did not see who the persons was as she reminded in her bedroom with her children and was too afraid to investigate what was happening. However, she noted that she was able to ascertain how Shurpugan’s killer escaped since she heard the fence rattle, adding that the gate was stilled chained.

The woman said that Shurpugan showed no signs of distress when they spoke earlier nor did she indicate that she was fearful of being harmed.

Meanwhile, Guyana Times understands that the woman is known to have many male friends visiting her and did not share a close relationship with her relatives because of this. It was also reported that the woman was recently in a relationship with a man called “Mark” of Samaroo Dam, Pouderoyen, WBD.

According to information reaching this newspaper, the man had even moved in with Shurpugan last December but the two were constantly fighting, reportedly over another woman he was with before, as such, the now dead woman had asked him to move out.

The body of 49-year-old Latchminie Shurpugan is at the Ezekiel Funeral Home awaiting a post-mortem examination.