As at January 31, there were 17 murders reported from around the country for the year, which is two more than the number recorded for the same month last year.
There were four murders recorded in the police’s ‘A’ Division (Conversation Tree to Dora); one murder in ‘B’ Division (Berbice); four murders in ‘C’ Division (East Coast Demerara); five in ‘D’ Division; and three in ‘E&F’ Division.
During the period, there were five cases where victims died from being shot, stabbed or battered/beaten, respectively. One victim was chopped to death and the method of killing used in one case was unclear.
Two females were murdered in January and both were cases of domestic violence. On January 3, Salima Mohammed was stabbed to death by her reputed husband Amrit Mohanram. The woman had just ended her relationship with the man. More recently, Shaunell Warrick succumbed to wounds allegedly sustained during a severe beating at the hands of her on-and-off partner Rudolph London.
The majority of the murders during January were due to disputes between the deceased and the perpetrators. Eight men were killed following arguments. There were four cases where victims were murdered during a robbery and three cases where the circumstances were unknown.
A man or woman was murdered every 43.2 hours (1.8 days) during the first 31 days of the year. In January 2010, there was a murder every 48 hours (2 days).
Last January guns were the chosen weapons used by perpetrators for killing. However, for this year there have been more cases of stabbings and beatings.
Former police constable Igris Bobb-Blackman was the only victim to be chopped to death. His body was discovered in a septic tank at his Parfait Harmonie, West Bank Demerara home on January 21. His reputed wife, Desiree Jeffers, has since been charged. Bobb-Blackman’s case was one of the more infamous murders in January.
