The woman who perished in Friday’s Port Kaituma fire along with her four children had been stabbed, a post-mortem yesterday revealed, according to a relative of the family.
It is still unclear if Lurlene La Cruz, 39, had been alive at the time of the fire which also claimed the lives of Lea La Cruz, 14, Labron La Cruz, 8, Lavette La Cruz, 3, and Levon La Cruz, 1. One of the siblings survived as she had gone to the police station to report that her father,
Linus La Cruz was arguing with her mother and threatening to burn the house down.
The finding that Lurlene had been stabbed explains the puzzlement over the fact that no sound had been heard from her during the fire and she appeared unable to save herself and her children. The post-mortem on the children yesterday found that they had all died from smoke inhalation and burns.
Meanwhile, a skull along with a number of bones were discovered yesterday amongst the debris of the fire. The remains were found by the owners of the burnt home after it had been officially handed over to them by fire and police officers after investigations had been completed. Carl Innis, brother of the accused arsonist Linus La Cruz, stated that the parts found appeared to be those of 1 year old Levon La Cruz.
According to Innis, Linus is still in the Port Kaituma Hospital and is fully aware of the deaths of his wife and children. Innis added that his brother is not eating much and is undergoing treatment for burns sustained from the fire.
In the meantime, the lone surviving child following the deadly fire is currently in the care of the Childcare and Protection Agency (CC&PA).
According to the Director of CC&PA, Ann Greene, two social workers in Port Kaituma are currently working on the girl’s case. “She’s receiving attention,” Greene said. “She’s in good hands.”
Up to Saturday evening, the girl had been staying with a teacher in the community. Residents of the area are also in the process of setting up meetings to figure out just how they can lend support to the girl.
The woman who had accompanied the girl to the police station to report the incident revealed that the accused arsonist’s sister had returned to Georgetown, leaving the girl behind.
Concern at the Port Kaituma police’s unresponsiveness to the girl’s initial report of abuse and threats is still running high, with at least one person suggesting the suspension or transferral of the officers who had been informed.
Residents believe if police had responded to the child’s initial reports, the lives of the mother and her four other children could have been saved.
“Police chase the child back home to call her father… she came holding on, screaming, saying that her father going to kill her mother. So, I tried to calm her tell her we going to go to the station but the child in tears telling me she went there already and they send her away to call her father,” a resident, who later accompanied the child to the station, told Stabroek News.
“This place is calling for a total investigation of the police. The police didn’t act. They are responsible here… most of the time when you call them nothing. Look they chase this child, tell her to go and sleep and must tell her father to come? What is that?” an angry Richard Allen, former regional parliamentarian, said.
Esther La Cruz, the sister of alleged arsonist, also called for an investigation on Saturday. “You don’t win with the police. You don’t. And we know that but we want an investigation. You know it is only when death comes the police is apply,” the woman said.
The funeral services for Lurlene and her four children will take place tomorrow. Fire Chief Marlon Gentle told Stabroek News on Saturday that from reports he received, Linus La Cruz was drunk as he had been drinking liquor on Friday afternoon.
“This man showed signs of this [being drunk] and reports we got said that he was drinking that afternoon. I understand one of his daughters went to report his threats but during this time this man locked in the rest of the family and used gasoline to set the fire… the community and our trained volunteers tried to get it but it was barricaded tightly by grilles,” Gentle explained.
A relative of La Cruz told Stabroek News that he was an introvert who stuck to the confines of his home and business and seldom ever drank alcohol.
However the relative pointed out that on the occasions when the man did drink, he would act paranoid and his behaviour became erratic. “He never used to smoke and would drink only one, one time. But you see, when he tek he liquor he get crazy, crazy, crazy… he would start fuh cuss up and get on bad but when that liquor come out he system you want know weh de mad man gone,” the relative said.
