The police are working with every bit of information they receive with the hopes of catching the man responsible for the brutal murder of 77-year-old Danrasie ‘Carmen’ Ganesh and are confident of a breakthrough soon.
Crime Chief Wendell Blanhum told Stabroek News yesterday that while a suspect who was detained on Tuesday remains in custody, detectives have “received information about another individual who fits the description of the person caught on camera”. He said that in this regard detectives are making efforts to find him.
Ganesh was clubbed to death in a Montrose house, East Coast Demerara on Saturday in an attack which lasted for about an hour. At the time she was the caretaker for the property as the owners reside abroad. The killer was caught on surveillance cameras installed in the yard and in the house carrying out the heinous crime.
One of the woman’s close relatives yesterday complained that she is yet to receive an update from the police with regards to the man most recently detained. Police had arrested a man shortly after the woman was found sprawled on the ground floor of the two level building but he was later released. A second man was then taken into custody.
The relative told this newspaper that a rank had contacted them earlier in the day with regards to uplifting an item that could apparently be useful to the investigation but he never came.
Stabroek News was later told that the divisional detective officer late yesterday afternoon visited relatives and assured them that the matter was being thoroughly investigated.
According to the relatives, family members are living in fear as they are certain that the man responsible is still roaming free. The relative pointed out that there seem to be conflicting views as it pertains to the identity of the killer. Stabroek News was told that while some people from the area claim they don’t recognise him some are saying that “he gat a knowing face”.
One resident though is adamant that the suspect matches the description of a man who worked at a location near the house where Ganesh was found, this newspaper was made to understand.
While expressing some uncertainty as to whether the killer will be caught, the relative said “I upset. Me inside turnin up cause up to now yuh anxiously waiting…me feeling fed up”. According to the relative, it has been suggested to other family members that a reward be offered. “She nah deserve dat. It was cruel…everybody hurt over this thing”, the relative stressed.
There seems to be divided views as to the motive of the killer. The woman’s family remains adamant that the intention was to kill Ganesh, not burglary. They noted that the house, for which Ganesh was caretaker, had brand new laptops and cordless phones and many other electronics items that were shipped to Guyana by the owners of the property but they were left untouched by the killer.
In a section of the surveillance footage viewed by this newspaper, the suspect who was clad in a maroon coloured t shirt and a pair of camouflage ¾ pants was observed meticulously searching a flower vase and between the flowers that were inside. He even searched through papers which were on the same dining table as the flower vase. Based on his modus operandi it is clear that he was searching for something specific. He apparently left without it.
The relative who spoke to Stabroek News yesterday said that it could be that the man was “peeping for jewellery. I don’t know”. The relative said that they are still trying to figure out what was the man’s intention. At one point the man looked back at the camera pointed at the dining table as if he knew that it was there.
Though time is going, the relative said that family members are hoping and praying that the perpetrator is caught and that they get justice.
The shocking discovery was made after neighbours and relatives became suspicious since Ganesh was not seen in the yard doing her daily chores. Upon checking, relatives were greeted with a locked gate and further checks led them to her body
A post-mortem examination revealed that the elderly woman died as a result of strangulation and brain haemorrhaging.
The surveillance footage, seen by Stabroek News, showed Ganesh in the yard around 5:30 am picking flowers. She spent about 20 minutes in the yard, during which time she ventured to the gate and appeared to be speaking to someone.
At about 6:12 am, the killer was observed coming out of the back seat of the parked car in the yard, armed with the spanner that he used to bludgeon Ganesh.
He made his way into the house unseen by bending amongst the flowers and grass in the yard.
A surveillance camera captured the man in the house at about 6:21 am. He was moving around while he hid from the woman. At 6:35 am, Ganesh was struck to the head by the suspect and she fell to the ground. The man was seen wrapping a piece of cloth around Ganesh’s neck while he dragged her. He then dealt her a few more blows with the spanner and he stomped on her.
Later the man was observed taking a snack and drinking juice that was inside the fridge. A few times he peeked outside the house.
He used a towel and wiped his face and hands before leaving the house.
At 7:13 am, the man left the house and as he stood in the yard he wiped his feet with a towel before walking towards the gate. After he apparently failed to locate the right key on the bunch to open the locked gate, he decided to climb over the fence and went onto the road, where he boarded a minibus heading in the direction of Georgetown.
