Joint Services revisit crime scene in search of evidence

WCB teens’ murder

As investigations continue into the gruesome murder of Isaiah and Joel Henry, members of the Joint Services, led by the Major Crimes Unit within the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of the Guyana Police Force, revisited the crime scene and combed its surroundings on Thursday.

Guyana Times was told that the search was conducted with the intention of finding pieces of evidence that would lead investigators to the primary scene, where the boys met their demise.
“We will be searching the area to look for personal items of the boys…we will be searching the entire backdam…,” a source told this publication.
However, the source also noted that all the persons who were arrested were released, but have to report to the Blairmont Police Station on a daily basis. The source also related that the Police are hunting for two other persons of interest.
In addition, the source noted that no arrest was made in connection with the slaying of Haresh Singh, who also met his demise in almost similar fashion as the Henry teens.
On Monday, the Guyana Police Force revealed that, based on evidence collected, 16-year-old Isaiah and 19-year-old Joel Henry were murdered at one location, and then their bodies were transported to the coconut estate on which they were discovered.

The badly-mutilated bodies of Isiah and Joel Henry were discovered almost one day after they had gone missing. They had reportedly left their Number Three Village, West Coast Berbice homes on Friday to pick coconuts in the backdam.
Their disappearance prompted family members to launch several search parties to look for them. After hours of searching, the badly-chopped bodies were discovered among the bushes, and were partially covered in mud.
Following the discovery, and in light of the gruesome manner in which the boys were murdered, Cotton Tree residents took to the streets. They blocked the roads and burned debris, all while calling for justice.
Police have, nevertheless, stated that investigators were confronted with some challenges, particularly in relation to accessing the crime scene with the roads being blocked.
However, once the ranks on the ground ensured safe passage for the investigators and crime scene ranks, preliminary findings showed that the bodies of the Henry boys were discovered at a secondary crime scene.
“Meaning that the heinous murders were not committed where the bodies were found. Person(s) moved the bodies after the murder, and placed them at the locations where they were subsequently discovered. Further, after the crime scene ranks classified the location where the bodies were discovered as a secondary crime scene, forensic evidence was discovered at the said area,” the Police said in a statement.
Investigators said that forensic evidence was identified, collected, preserved, and submitted to the Guyana Forensic Laboratory for DNA analysis to be conducted. DNA samples were also collected from the suspects who were in custody and sent for a comparative analysis, to be conducted against the forensic evidence collected from the secondary crime scene.
The Police Force said that results are expected within three weeks.
The post-mortem examinations (PME) conducted on the badly mutilated bodies of Joel and Isaiah found that the teenagers died as a result of haemorrhage and shock owing to the extent of their wounds.
Joel had a total of 18 wounds. It is believed that the fatal wound severed the teenager’s spine between the 1st and 2nd vertebrae.
In the case of Isaiah, he also sustained a severed spine, but unlike his cousin, the teenager had no defensive wounds. In addition, Isaiah sustained a number of chop wounds to his head.
It was reported that the teenagers may have been dead for about 36 hours before they were discovered on Sunday, September 6, 2020.