Husband to be charged for wife’s murder

The husband of 47-year-old Justil Bernard of Shulinab village, Rupununi, Region Nine (Upper Takatu-Upper Essequibo) who died on Sunday last at her home during a drinking spree, will be arraigned with her murder in the new week.

At the time of the alleged accident, the woman’s husband claimed that the woman fell while she was going to use the washroom.

The Police arrested the man and kept him in custody until a post-mortem examination was conducted. However, the post-mortem proved that the woman was murdered. The autopsy performed by Dr Nehaul Singh gave the cause of death as blunt trauma to the head and a fractured skull.

It was based on this revelation that the Police sought advice from the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) who recommended that charges be instituted.

When contacted on Friday, F Division (Interior locations) Commander, Rabindranauth Budhram, stated that the suspect is expected to be charged on Monday. On February 19, 2017, the man and his wife were imbibing during which an argument reportedly started. It was during the argument the suspect reportedly dealt the woman a blow to the head causing her to fall. The injured Bernard was picked up and taken to the Lethem Hospital where she was pronounced dead on arrival. Up to that time, the suspect maintained that his wife had slipped and fallen.