Mother still awaits answers for daughters’ death

IT was just after daybreak on Valentine’s Day, 2009, when June Joseph hurriedly made her way to her Smythfield home where detectives were waiting to get access into the house, where the lifeless body of her only daughter, Nekeshia Rouse, was seen in a blood-spattered kitchen.
Her intended daughter-in-law Alexis George, was also found dead in the yard, about 200 yards away from their home.
In a recent interview with the Guyana Chronicle, June said she is still waiting for answers surrounding the young women’s demise.
On Christmas Day, her daughter, a hairstylist and make-up artist, would ensure that she is well groomed.

“My daughter was filled with joy. Always happy. She nor Alexis deserve such a horrible death. More so, no one was ever charged. I need an awakening of this case. With social media, I am sure that someone can reveal something that can result in the successful prosecution of the killer,” the mother said.
Nekeshia’s children, Omatoya Rouse called “Christina” and Crystal Stephenson have no memory of their mother, except what is told to them by their elders.
The incident, which had rocked the township of New Amsterdam, remains etched in the memory of June, who is left to care for Nekeshia’s daughter, Crystal, 16. She was just four years old when the incident snatched her mother away from her.

She simply smiles as she repeats her mother’s name, “Nekeshia! Nekeshia!”
But for June, the details on her kitchen wall and blood-spattered floor will always be remembered.
On that fateful day, ranks from the Central Police Station, New Amsterdam had responded to reports that there was a body of an identifiable woman, clad in her underwear, in a yard approximately 200 yards from her home.

It was about 05:40hrs and the woman was identified as Alexis George, 17, mother of a one-year-old daughter.
The police moved across to her home which Alexis shared with Nekeshia, but attempts to gain entry into the building proved unsuccessful.
As a result, a telephone call was made to June, the mother of Nekeshia, who was on duty as a security guard at the Gaffoor hardware outlet at Fort Canje.
On Joseph’s arrival, she opened the door, aided with a key, and discovered the lifeless body of her only daughter.

Rouse’s body was found in a slouching position in the kitchen with blood spattered across the walls. The footprints of the killer were impressed by the blood which lined the floor.
Eyewitnesses said the 25-year-old woman had earlier returned home around 04:00hrs from a party, in the company of a rank of the Guyana Police Force.
It is believed that the killer may have entered the house probably through the verandah door which was improperly secured, or could have gained access after an occupant had opened the door, as there was no sign of forced entry.

Nekeshia’s jugular veins were punctured in the brutal attack.
Alexis, who was awakened by the commotion, apparently attempted to be the peacemaker, or had identified the killer, and in the process was stabbed in the neck.
In an attempt to escape from the scene, she fled down a flight of stairs, ran on to the roadway, before entering a neighbour’s yard, two house lots away, before collapsing.
As the women lay lifeless, cries of Omatoya and Crystal were heard some distance away, alerting observers. Little did they know that they will never see their mother again.