According to one of the man’s relatives, Washington was last seen two Saturdays ago by his girlfriend when he left his Lot 105, South Vryheid’s Lust, East Coast Demerara home for an errand at a market in the city. His aunt told this newspaper yesterday that Washington, who did not own the hire car he drove, lived at the Vryheid’s Lust address with his girlfriend, and that she would speak to him on a regular basis, the last time being a week prior to his disappearance when she spoke to him by telephone. She said she had tried to contact her nephew the day after he went missing but recalled that the young man’s phone was turned off. She said she thought nothing of it since Washington would normally sleep late on Sunday mornings.
The woman related that Washington’s girlfriend visited another relative on Tuesday, October 27 and related that he was missing and according to the woman, her sister contacted her by telephone and related what the man’s girlfriend had said. She said she then told her sister not to let the man’s girlfriend leave, noting that the young lady was hesitant about accompanying her and other relatives to the police station, informing them at the time that she was planning to travel to the interior. The woman said that evening a call was placed to Washington’s mobile phone and a female, whose voice was unfamiliar, answered the call informing that Washington was not around.
According to the man’s aunt, a missing person’s report was subsequently made at the Brickdam Police Station and officers there advised her to visit the Sparendaam Police station where a statement was taken from her by ranks there. She said the officers also informed that an all station message would have been dispatched.
The woman stated that last Sunday, the day before Washington’s body was discovered , his girlfriend relocated to the East Bank of Demerara and had begun to move several items, including a suitcase filled with clothing, from the Vryhied’s Lust address. The young lady is currently in custody at the East La Penitence police station.
The man’s aunt said that from what she could have recalled, her nephew and the young woman had been together for several months, noting that he was a jovial person who was well loved by many. When questioned as to whether her nephew had any existing problems with anyone, she said she could not recall same. She stated however, that the man and his girlfriend’s brother-in-law “had a problem sometime last month over marijuana”, stating that she did not know the details behind the issue.
She also stated that Washington’s body was identified by the clothes he was wearing when he was found, noting that his girlfriend recounted that the clothes he wore on the day he went missing, were the same which he was wearing when he was found, including a pair of jeans which carried two ‘birds’ on the back pockets. She said that relatives are currently awaiting a post-mortem examination to be carried out by the authorities before the body is handed over to them for burial.
The man’s disappearance came as a surprise to his aunt since according to her whenever he left the country, Washington would inform her of his intentions or his whereabouts.
Washington’s decomposing body was found around 1 pm on Monday off the Linden/Soesdyke Highway. In addition to the clothes he was wearing when he was found, a pair of black leather shoes and a black tee shirt were found some distance away from his body. A .45 spent shell and a warhead were also found near to the body but the police could not say whether the man suffered a gunshot wound. (Alva Solomon)
