Dionne Stephens’ reputed husband, who reportedly hacked her to death at Vigilance last week, is still on the run.
Hollita Stephens told Stabroek News yesterday that her sister will be laid to rest today. Since Dionne was murdered, Hollita said, they have heard little from the police. However, the woman stressed that they will not give up hope for justice. “I know some people mus’ be thinking that after we bury she we goin’ to simmer down but we na going to do that; that is when we going to really start pushin’ de matter,” Hollita explained.
Some time around 10 pm on last Monday, Dionne was attacked by her former partner Leon Robinson. The man, relatives had alleged, tormented Dionne continuously during their seven-year relationship before he finally ended her life at the back of her mother’s Vigilance, East Coast Demerara home.
Robinson, who was wounded by Dionne’s relative, escaped towards the backlands. Commander of Police ‘C’ Division Gavin Primo had given the assurance that police were doing everything to find the man. Despite this, Hollita and other grieving relatives do not believe that police are doing enough to find Robinson. Recently, Hollita explained, investigators went to her mother’s Vigilance home asking for a picture of Robinson. “I ask them why them ain’t go to he [Robinson’s] family and them tell me how the family seh them ain’t got picture… so I had to turn and tell them to go check with the Immigration section because this man got a passport and he going to be down in their records anyhow… Is like these people don’t think sometimes,” the woman said.
Investigators, according to her, had indicated that they were trying to locate the picture so that a wanted bulletin could be issued for Robinson. “De police might want think that we trying to mek them look bad,” Hollita further added, “but we na doing nothing like that. If we de satisfied that them de doing everything to search for this man then we woulda seh so.”
Dionne, 31, was the mother of four children. The eldest is 14 years old and the youngest nine years old. The children are currently staying with their grandmother Desiree at her Vigilance home. The Ministry of Human Services has since promised the family some amount of assistance to take care of the children. Arrangements, Hollita had further said, were also made to see that the children receive counselling after their mother’s funeral.
“Having a death in de family is not easy for anybody but it harder for us because of how she go and it more hard for meh mother because she see de whole thing happen She [Desiree] ain’t ever going to forget it for the rest of she life,” Hollita said.
