One week after a mother and her child were found brutally murdered in their Rose Hall Town, Corentyne home, police are yet to make a major breakthrough with the case, prompting family members to urge the authorities to intensify their investigations.
In fact, family members are accusing the police of looking in the wrong direction.
It was on August 23 that the bodies of 31-year-old Melisa Arokium and her eight-year-old son, Anthony Arokium were discovered at their Mangrove Street, Rose Hall Town home in Berbice, Region Six.
Within two hours of the discovery, police told the media that four persons of interest were taken into custody and had been assisting with the investigation.
In a subsequent statement, police said those arrested were Serrana Arokium called ‘Foody’, a 33-year-old cane-harvester, a brother; the brother that discovered the body of the victims, Nicholas Arokium, called ‘Nico’, a 26-year-old vendor; the boyfriend of the victim, Shailendra Umrao, a 37-year-old of Belvedere, Corentyne Berbice; and a neighbour of the victim, Deo Naris, a 38-year-old deejay.
However, family members say the police never arrested Nicholas Arokium. The grandmother and great-grandmother of victims, Ruth Hintzen said the man had spent the past two days plying his trade as a vendor at the Rose Hall Town Market.
“No he was not in police custody, The police carried him at the same time with the same with the other brother; it was the two of them and he came out back. He was never detained,” the woman said during an interview on Tuesday.
This publication understands that investigators had also arrested a cousin of the now-dead woman and that information was withheld from the media. That cousin had reportedly publicly made threats on her life.
The cousin was subsequently placed at the National Psychiatric Hospital. This publication also understands that the cousin has a close relative who is a part of the investigating team.
Those who were taken into custody have since been released. However, there are reports that as the investigation continued, a fifth person was taken into custody.
Meanwhile, relatives of the victims are of the view that investigators might be focusing in the wrong direction. The 72-year-old grandmother says there needs to be deeper digging.
“I hear how the boyfriend dos get mad with she because of the lil boy. The lil boy does tell his uncle that the boy does get vex when he go near she and she does tell the boy if he want to talk to her, he have to talk to Anthony first.”
The now-dead woman’s boyfriend, Shailendra Umrao, said he last visited the woman’s home the day before the discovery, where he saw her crying. He told this publication that when he asked her why she was crying, she did not give much details.
Meanwhile, family members say the now-dead woman and one of her brothers recently had a misunderstanding over an unpaid electricity bill.
The woman had shared the building with a brother but they lived in separate apartments.
Meanwhile, police had also arrested a neighbour. There are reports that the said individual once tried to break into Melissa’s house.
Hintzen says the family is not satisfied with the pace of the investigation.
“We are not satisfied. We are crazy about it because the first thing that got me crazy was when I see my granddaughter on the ground and those chops on her body and then show the boy on the bed too with even his eyeball bulging out.”
Meanwhile, a candle light vigil is planned for Thursday. The mother and son are expected to be laid to rest on Saturday.
