15-year-old charged with murdering suspect in sister’s abuse

A 15-year-old in the North West District has been charged with murder after he is alleged to have fatally beaten a businessman, who was accused of raping his pre-teen sister, and then staging his death to look like a suicide.

Divisional Commander Ravindradat Budhram told Stabroek News that the murder occurred in August.

He said when ranks responded to the crime scene, the businessman was found hanging, which led investigators to suspect suicide.

However, according to Budhram, the results of an autopsy led them to treat the case as a murder and their investigation later revealed that the man was fatally beaten by a relative of the alleged rape victim. Investigators believe the relative, after the murder, staged the suicide to distract investigators.

The Guyana Police Force, in a press release, said a thorough investigation was done into the matter and legal advice was sought before a criminal charge, which was instituted a few days ago.

According to the police, there was no evidence to validate the claims that the girl was sexually abused. “The alleged victim was medically examined and found not to be sexually active,” the release said.