–as probe into Sophia child’s murder deepens

THE police on Wednesday confirmed that the three persons held for questioning in the murder of eight-year-old Isaiah Smartt have been placed on bail.

According to Commander ‘A’ Division Marlon Chapman, the decision was taken following a directive from the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) that the police should widen their probe.

Chapman disclosed that two of the three persons who were in custody are the child’s relatives, while the other is a fellow villager.

The body of Isaiah Smartt of Lot 148 ‘E’ Block Plum Park, Sophia was found in a yard two Tuesday afternoons ago by a relative of his.

The boy was last seen alive the Monday night when he left home to visit his father, who resides a short distance away.

An autopsy done on the child’s remains has revealed that he died as a result of asphyxiation due to broncho-aspiration, which was compounded by compression injuries to the neck.

The police have since said that the findings of the autopsy is a clear indication that Smartt’s death was unnatural, and as a result has to be ruled a homicide.

Though young Isaiah’s body was found in a swampy yard in the neighbourhood, relatives are insisting that he did not drown because he was an excellent swimmer. They’re insisting that he died of foul play.

Commander Chapman had told the Guyana Chronicle at the time that the child’s body, which bore no visible marks of violence, was found at around 19:45hrs that night in about two feet of water.

He’d related that after the child did not show up at his father’s house, relatives mounted a search party, and after finding the body, summoned the police.