POLICE in Berbice are investigating the circumstances under which 17-year-old Melissa Shania Somah, called Lisa, met her death, after her body was pulled out of the Berbice River, in the vicinity of DeVeldt Village.

Lisa, as she was fondly called, left her parents  and  three-year-old son behind, at  their home, located at Lot 58 Stanleytown, New Amsterdam, three months ago,  telling them she was going up the Berbice River with her boyfriend. That was the last time they saw or heard from her.

Her father, Paul Somah, related to Guyana Chronicle that he was working at the car wash, just after 17:00hrs, when he received a telephone call from DeVeldt village captain, telling him that his daughter had died. It is believed that the young woman was in a paddle boat when she made an attempt to jump overboard.

However, information from the riverine community suggested that there was an argument between the deceased teen and a male who has since been arrested.  At the New Amsterdam Stelling, on Thursday night, scores of persons converged to await the arrival of the body which was escorted by police. As the detained man was escorted from the police boat, the crowd shouted, “we want justice”. However, as they attempted to take hold of the man, police ranks shielded him, whilst urging that relatives await the conclusion of the investigation.

Meanwhile, at the New Amsterdam Hospital mortuary, where the body was identified by her mother, Shondel Cobena, screams were heard a distance away after the parents stared in horror at the badly disfigured body of their daughter. “My daughter was burnt. There is no hair on her head. She was faceless. Just a bone for her right arm. My daughter met a cruel death. That was not drowning. That was murder,” she opined. The body is currently at the Arokium Funeral Home. A post mortem is scheduled to be conducted shortly.