By Leroy Smith
[www.inewsguyana.com] – President Donald Ramotar on Sunday morning (May 04) expressed his total shock at the execution style killing of former Linden Commission of Inquiry Commissioner, Senior Counsel Dana Seetahal.
President Ramotar told iNews (www.inewsguyana.com) that the development is indeed a shock to him, as he expressed sympathies to the Trinidad and Tobago Government and Judiciary on behalf of the people and government of Guyana.
The President questioned the motive of the killing and stated that the incident is an unfortunate one.
The Government of Guyana in 2012 retained the services of Seetahal and two other senior regional legal minds to sit on the investigate the circumstances leading up and surrounding the unrest in the mining town of Linden, the shooting to death of three protesters and the damage to state and private properties.
Reports out of Trinidad state that at about 12:05 a.m. Seetahal was in her Volkswagen SUV proceeding north along Hamilton-Holder street, Woodbrook when upon reaching the vicinity of the Woodbrook Youth Club two vehicles pulled alongside her causing her to come to a stop.
One of the vehicles, a Nissan Wingroad, then drove ahead a short distance and pulled across the road, blocking it. The other vehicle which was described as a panel van pulled alongside and the occupants of that vehicle pulled out their firearms and opened fire on the SUV.
The two vehicles then sped off and made good their escape. Residents of the area, on hearing the gunshots contacted the police and emergency health services. However, despite their swift response, when they arrived, the senior counsel was dead — slumped along her driver’s seat.
The first responders notified their seniors and a party of officers including ACP Wayne Dick, Senior Superintendent Ishmael David, Acting ASP Williams, Inspector Thomas, Inspector Veronique,
Inspector Lawrence, and Inspector Rampersad, among others, visited the scene. Crime scene investigators recovered several 5.62 shells at the scene.
Police are currently working on two theories as a result of this killing. The first, and most prominent, is that because of the nature of the incident it was a “hit” arising out of the Senior Counsel’s involvement in the Vindra Naipaul-Coolman case.
