– Relatives plead for justice
SWIFT response from the Police in Region 5, Mahaica /Berbice, on Saturday, resulted in the clearing of the Public Road at Number Three Village, West Coast Berbice (WCB) after residents blocked the road with debris and lit tyres on fire in their quest for justice over the brutal murder of 16-year-old Isaiah Henry and 18-year-old Joel Henry.
Police Headquarters, in a statement, noted that about 13:45hrs on Saturday, the Police received a report of the public road, running through No. Five Village, being blocked. As such, ranks from the division immediately responded and observed that the road was indeed blocked and the debris was on fire.
By late Saturday afternoon, the road was fully cleared and a heavy police presence remained in the communities. More than a month after the murder of the teen-cousins, the Police have not charged anyone and no one is currently in custody.
The mutilated bodies of the teen-cousins were found on September 6 with several chop wounds in the Cotton Tree backdam. Their gruesome murders sparked violent protests across the country for almost a week.
Meanwhile, speaking with the Sunday Chronicle, Gladson Henry, the father of Isaiah, stated he is hoping that justice can be delivered swiftly; he wants the investigation to move faster so that the perpetrators can face the full brunt of the law.
While noting that his family had nothing to do with the fiery protest Saturday, Mr. Henry stated that the people who protested are feeling the pain since the boys were innocent.
He, however, called for the protest to be done peacefully.
“I feel that anyone has a right because people feel it. Because they see innocent youths have died. I cannot tell people what to do; I can’t stop them from doing what they are doing because my way is different from their way,” Mr Henry told this newspaper.
The Police Force is vigorously pursuing international help to probe the gruesome murders of the Henry boys and that of 17-year-old Haresh Singh who was killed in the protests that ensued.
Earlier this month, the Police Force said it is awaiting the final report from the Regional Security System (RSS) which arrived in Guyana on September 28, spent one week assisting local detectives and has since departed.
But Mr. Henry said he is hoping that in addition to the regional help, assistance should be provided by a team of international investigators who have better equipment and resources.
“I feel sad. Time has been going and no evidence or form of answer has been given to us,” a distraught Mr. Henry said.
Mr. Henry stated that he and his family would feel at ease knowing that the perpetrators are found. While the cousins were found in Cotton Tree, Police later determined that they were killed elsewhere and dumped in Cotton Tree.
Investigators are yet to locate the primary crime scene. A Post Mortem Examination (PME) conducted on the mutilated bodies of the boys found that they both died from haemorrhage and shock due to multiple incised injuries including severed spines.
