Police detectives are wrapping up their investigation into the murder of Montrose senior Danrasie Ganesh and will be seeking legal advice on charges against the three suspects now in custody, Crime Chief Wendell Blanhum said yesterday.
Detectives are certain that they have enough evidence to lay charges, which could be instituted as early as today, depending on what advice is given by the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) and how soon this is communicated to the police.
Stabroek News has been reliably informed that while the prime suspect, who is said to be the man recorded by surveillance cameras beating the elderly woman to death on August 1st, is sticking to his story that he was paid $700,000 to kill the woman and steal her documents, the two men he has implicated are denying any involvement.
At the time of his arrest, the suspect was outfitted in the same clothing he wore when committing the murder. His clothes along with a boots and a belt are with the police and detectives have taken samples for forensic testing.
The man told police he was hired by one of the Ganesh’s close relatives to kill her and to the steal documents concerning her property, which is the subject of an ongoing dispute with a businessman. The businessman is also in police custody.
Ganesh’s family believes the male relative in custody was not involved in any way and says that there are gaps in the killer’s claims.
The property that Ganesh owns is located not far from the house where she was killed. The woman was the caretaker for the house in which she was killed.
Stabroek News was told the businessman had encroached on a portion of land which Ganesh claimed belonged to her. The businessman owns a plot of land in front of the property owned by Ganesh.
Based on the suspect’s account to police, he was able to gain entry to the property through the woman’s close relative, who opened the gate for him the night before the murder. Both men apparently slept in a vehicle which was parked in the yard.
The suspect also told police that he had a gun in his possession and he suggested that he use it. However, the relative was not in favour of this method, since he was fearful that neighbours might be alerted if the gun was fired. A spanner was later found in the vehicle and the suspect said that he suggested that it be used to on the woman.
Using a key given to him by the relative, the man claimed that he entered the house. His instructions were to locate the documents and hand them over to the relative. Stabroek News was told that the man recounted the events just as how they were captured in the surveillance footage.
The chilling footage of the murder showed Ganesh being struck to the head by the suspect, who later wrapped a piece of cloth around her neck while he dragged her. Later, he was seen hitting her repeatedly.
The man told investigators that after taking documents he had found to the relative, who was waiting outside, he was instructed to go back inside and retrieve the surveillance footage. However, instead of taking a disk from a DVR, he found and collected a disk from a DVD player.
The man, who is known for committing break and enter offences, was arrested on Saturday in Guyhoc Park. Police had had him under surveillance for about two weeks. Realising that a photo of him had been published in the newspapers and on television, the man was moving from location to location during that time, out of fear that people might recognise him.
