POLICE on the East Coast are still trying to determine what might have led to the death of Cuban national Edwardo Barreios who was discovered dead in his bed by neighbours last Sunday.

When this newspaper visited the Cummings Lodge, East Coast Demerara village yesterday, the dead man’s neighbour and power-of-attorney, Babi (only name given), and other residents were still stunned at the death.

Babi said she had not seen Barreios for a number of days and was not aware that he had been ill. He had been living there for four years.

The woman said the first indication she had that something was amiss was when the Cuban’s upstairs neighbour visited her house on Sunday afternoon to inform her that a foul smell and a lot of flies were coming out of the downstairs apartment.

Babi said she went over to the house and upon reaching the door, grew apprehensive and called for one of the male neighbours to enter the house with her.

She said the man went around to the back of the house and came back and urgently told them to call the police as a very foul odor was emanating from the house.

Barreios’ decomposing body was subsequently discovered, face down, on his bed.

The Power-of-Attorney told this newspaper that the last she saw the deceased was when he paid the rent last December, adding that the man was a very quiet individual.

The woman added that she is dismayed that the man’s friend who had invited him out on Old Year’s Night did not check on him when he told her that all he had was “sugar water” to drink and did not have the strength to get out of bed to take it.

She said it is not a case where the man did not have money, as cash and other valuable items were found in the house.

Barreios, an electrical engineer, had been living and teaching in Guyana for the past ten years at the University of Guyana.

The Cuban national also taught Spanish at the Cummings Lodge Secondary School.

A post mortem on the man’s body is being awaited to determine the cause of death.