Linden teacher’s murder: Ex-partner allegedly confesses to killing; claims he tossed gun into Demerara River

Just one day after the devastating loss of a Linden teacher, her accused ex-partner has confessed to the killing.
The murder suspect Shaka Phillips, also known as ‘Concrete Man’, a 21-year-old resident of Central Amelia’s Ward, Linden, admitted to investigators that he allegedly shot and killed his 26-year-old child’s mother, Jenel Pollydore.
Phillips was arrested on Sunday and told investigators that on July 19, he had been calling Jenel’s cellphone, but she was not answering. As a result, he went to the R&R Hotel in Central Amelia’s Ward, Linden, where a wedding reception was being held, and saw Jenel talking to a man.

Phillips said he confronted her and asked why she was not answering his calls, leading to an argument. He stated that he became upset, took a gun from his shoulder bag, and shot her. Jenel ran into the hotel yard, and he chased her, shooting her again. He saw her fall to the ground, then fled the scene on a bicycle and went into hiding in Amelia’s Ward.
He told investigators that he subsequently went to ‘Adams boat landing’ and threw the gun into the Demerara River. Police on Monday said that he was taken back to the scene and the area where he claimed he threw the gun however due to the spring tide on Sunday investigators were unable to conduct a search for the gun. The interview with the suspect was video and audio recorded.
The man was arrested hours after he killed the mother of three. He was arrested at South Amelia’s Ward on Sunday.
Initial police reports concluded that, the couple had been in a relationship and were cohabiting, but Pollydore had reportedly separated from Phillips after enduring repeated physical abuse.
A restraining order had been taken out against him, but that did not stop the violence. The victim’s relative, Malika Pollydore, told investigators that they were attending a wedding reception at the hotel when the incident occurred. Pollydore was standing near the hotel’s gate when Phillips approached her and questioned why she was not answering her phone. An argument followed, during which he pulled out a handgun and shot her.

She ran toward the pool area inside the hotel, but Phillips reportedly chased her and fired two more rounds. Pollydore collapsed and lay motionless on the floor. Police, upon arrival, discovered her body with gunshot wounds to the right side of her face and the back of her head. Two 9mm spent shells were recovered at the scene. She was pronounced dead on arrival at the Linden Hospital Complex.

“She tried, she did everything”
In a live video interview conducted by Simona Broomes, former Government Minister and member of the People’s National Congress Reform (PNC/R), the woman’s stepmother, Madonna Pollydore, gave an emotional account of receiving a chilling phone call. “She asked me yesterday [Saturday] to take care of the baby, she wants to go to a wedding. At approximately 8 o’clock, she messaged me back and she said she was waiting on a car and that she will be home shortly… then not long after, she called and I heard, ‘Madonna, I get shoot. Then couple minutes after somebody take the phone and you hear them saying come to R&R hotel now.”
The stepmother said her cousin, who witnessed the incident, described how Pollydore had begged for her life. “She said they were waiting on the car and the individual came up there and started an argument …he pull out the gun and she start to beg. She said don’t kill me, don’t kill me went on her knees, begging him, ‘Stop, don’t shoot me”, she explained.
“He shot a first bullet at her and she run behind… and that was when she was shot two more times… she begged him for her life. Even though she got shot, she get up and she run.”

Harassment and abuse
“He tried to stab her before”, her father stated. “He would show up at all hours. He even threw gasoline on himself to light himself on fire. He took her phone and he damaged it. Once, in front of the children, he started lashing himself in the head with a hammer.” Repeated reports were made to the police, but the family claims their pleas for help were ignored. “We were told they didn’t have a patrol. One officer even told us to ‘throw stale pee’ on him. They did nothing.”
Despite a restraining order and ongoing complaints, Phillips continued to stalk Pollydore, showing up at her workplace, home, and other locations, even as she tried to protect her children. The most recent of the Pollydore’s children is just three months old.
The victim had confided in friends that she feared for her life. In a voice note shared online, Pollydore said she broke up with Phillips because he had “started acting like he was running mad.” She said, “I didn’t block him because I didn’t want to take his child away from him.”
The family is calling for justice. “She tried. She did everything. We made the reports. She got the restraining order and still, she died,” the stepmother lamented. “When she was alive they did nothing, now that she dead, a set of them guarding her body. For what?!” she asked.