Essequibo Coast man charged for fiery deaths of reputed wife, 3-year-old son

A 31-year-old labourer has been charged with the murder of his common-law partner and their three-year-old son, whose charred remains were found after a fire destroyed their home at David James Housing Scheme, Charity, Essequibo Coast, Region Two (Pomeroon-Supenaam).
Mahindra Latchman, of David James Housing Scheme, was charged on Thursday with two counts of murder in connection with the deaths of Donette Albert, 29, and Keron Latchman.

He appeared before Magistrate Ravindra Mohabir at the Anna Regina Magistrate’s Court, where the charges were read to him. He was not required to plead and was remanded to prison.
The matter was adjourned to November 2.
The charges stem from a fire that occurred on October 19, at the family’s two-storey wooden home in the Essequibo Coast community.
As previously reported in the media, Police received a report of the fire at about 07:20h, and firefighters responded and found the building fully engulfed in flames, with reports that two occupants were trapped inside.
After extinguishing the fire, firefighters conducted a search and discovered the charred remains of an adult and a child on a burnt bed inside the house.
The remains were taken to Charity Hospital for examination before being transferred to the Suddie Public Hospital Mortuary. Post-mortem examinations were pending at the time of the initial report.
According to Police, Albert had been living at the residence with Latchman, her common-law partner of about four years, and their son. The family had moved from Charity Housing Scheme to David James Scheme approximately two years earlier.
During the initial investigation, Albert’s sister, Tatiana Albert, 31, told Police that she received a telephone call from her sister at about 07:00h on the day of the fire and was asked to come immediately.
She reportedly hired a taxi and arrived at the residence about 15 minutes later, where she saw the house engulfed in flames and Latchman standing alone on the access road.
Police said Latchman told Tatiana that he and Albert had been arguing and that she had threatened to set the house on fire. He reportedly claimed that he went downstairs to brush his teeth and subsequently realised that the building was ablaze.
He also reportedly said that he attempted to re-enter the house to rescue Albert and their son but was unable to do so because of the intensity of the fire.
Police had reported that Latchman was arrested at the scene and taken to the Charity Police Station. He was treated at Charity Hospital for a wound to the right side of his head before being discharged and returned to Police custody.
Investigators also collected swabs from his hands and clothing for chemical analysis and took his nail clippings as part of the probe.