Antigua: Missing trio found, two dead

Bharat Kumar                                          Lotoya Craig
Bharat Kumar Lotoya Craig

(Antigua Observer) The police are probing what appears to be a murder/suicide following the discovery of the bodies of two adults who had reportedly not been seen or heard from by relatives since Tuesday.

A tearful relative of one of the deceased, told Observer media via phone on Friday night that the police confirmed that the female deceased is Latoya Craig of Clare Hall and the male deceased is the man with whom she once shared a relationship.

The family identified the man as Bharat Kumar and said he was the one who called Craig on Tuesday and later picked her up, along with her three-year-old son, and took them out “to English Harbour.”

It is alleged that before going with the man, Craig told her current partner where she was going and with whom. It is alleged she said he was taking her “to clean a property in English Harbour” which is used as a place of worship.

But she never returned home and the following day, relatives tried desperately to get in touch with her.

Three days ago, Craig’s mother reported the matter to police after waiting the “48-hour” period required to file a missing person report.

But, even up to Friday, lawmen had not issued public notices of the missing woman and child. It was a sister who made it public on social media and shared contact numbers for people to reach the family.

Around mid-afternoon on Friday, Craig’s three-year-old son was found, in good health, and taken to the Mount St John’s Medical Centre.

The bodies of his mother and her ex-partner were at the property of a businessman who is said to be Kumar’s adopted father.Some describe the location as English Habour while others say it is actually in the Liberta area. 

On Friday night, investigators combed the scene for evidence to determine what exactly happened since both bodies were found hanging – the woman was in the dining area, and the man outside by a tree. The child was also found on the scene and taken to hospital and treated for dehydration.

Initial reports suggest that the woman appeared to have been dead longer than the male and both bodies bore signs of violence as if the two adults were involved in an altercation.