-during attempted river escape
After repeated pleas for swift action in the murder investigation of boater Patricia Williams, the police last evening intercepted a boat on the Essequibo River that was ferrying the suspect to Bartica.
The 20-year-old suspect was reportedly fleeing Foulmouth for shelter in Bartica with the aid of relatives, but information of his getaway was leaked and Williams’ relatives moved against him. Reports are that the man was hiding in the area since he allegedly killed Williams just over a week ago.
Lynette Braithwaite, Williams’ niece, told Stabroek News last evening that the police intercepted the boat just before 7 pm. She said the suspect was at the time with two relatives, both of whom were in police custody up to press time last night. Braithwaite said that previous reports of relatives aiding the suspect have now been confirmed.
She said her husband was at home around 6:30 pm when persons in the area rushed to the home to say the suspect was fleeing Foulmouth. “My husband left immediately and I called the police at Bartica,” she recalled. It was shortly after that the police intercepted the boat in the river and apprehended the suspect. According to Braithwaite, relatives seeking justice and those unsettled by Williams’ murder are a bit relieved by the capture.
Prior to the arrest, residents of Foulmouth, Essequibo River had raised concerns with this newspaper about the suspect and “his continued threats.”
Melanie Pollard, captain of the small riverside community, told Stabroek News that the community remained concerned that the authorities were not doing much to apprehend the man. She said she had been in contact with the police on the incident and was expected to follow-up on the issue with police stationed at the Bartica Police station.
A resident of the community told Stabroek News yesterday that two police officers were in the area yesterday but the officers were there in connection with a complaint made by a resident about noise nuisance.
She said the residents were at a loss as to why the law enforcement officers were prolonging their investigations into the matter, adding that the man had been making several attempts to leave the community. She said the males in the village had been trying to apprehend the man but he has been hiding out in a forested area aback Foulmouth.
Williams’ partly nude body was discovered by the residents in a clump of bushes close to a landing, where she was reportedly attacked by the suspect.
The woman had moments earlier dropped off her brother and was reportedly attacked as she dropped off the suspect. A post-mortem report revealed that she had strangled and also sexually assaulted.
Williams, 50, was a security guard but had operated a boat part-time. Initial investigations, according to police, revealed that Williams had transported a group of men including the suspect, from Bartica to Foulmouth (a five-mile journey) earlier that day.