The village of Hope, East Coast Demerara was rocked yesterday after the body of a 14-year-old girl was pulled out of the Hope Canal, one day after she went missing.
The girl has been positively identified as Malika Hamilton, of Lot 11 Two Sisters Village, East Coast Demerara.
Hamilton, a student of Hope Secondary School, left home on Monday following an argument over the telephone with her father and never returned. As time elapsed, her relatives became worried that something was amiss and formed a search party.
The discovery of her body was made around 1.30pm yesterday, several miles away from the Hope Canal Bridge, by residents of the community who had ventured into the canal to swim.
While it is unclear whether the Hamilton’s body bore any marks of violence, she was bleeding through her ears and her neck was broken.
Commander of ‘C’ Division Marlon Chapman said the police are awaiting the results of a post-mortem examination to determine if there was any foul play in the girl’s death.
When Stabroek News visited the scene yesterday, persons from the community and beyond had gathered in their numbers. The area was cordoned off as a crime scene while investigators conducted their investigations.
There was chaos when the body was lifted from the ground to be placed on the stretcher. Relatives screamed at the top of their voices and broke down as the undertakers placed the body into the hearse.
As the hearse drove off, some ran behind and pulled open its door. As a result, Hamilton’s body was pitched some distance on to the roadway. They dealt the driver of the hearse a slap to his face after he intervened.
The drama did not end there as many persons then walked to the home of Hamilton. While many wailed loudly some fainted. Hamilton’s mother was too traumatised to speak.
The young woman’s cousin related to this newspaper that on Monday morning, Malika and her father had a heated argument on the telephone. Afterwards, she said that among other things, Malika proceeded to say to her that she would kill herself.
The cousin said while she is unaware of the subject of the conversation between the teen and her father, Malika did relate to her that “things were getting overbearing.” As a result, she said she tried to comfort her. “I give she meh phone, because I know once she get that she will stay quiet and afterwards she tell meh she going by my sister to plait she hair but never turn up there too,” she said.
However, as night approached, the cousin said, family members became worried and started to enquire about the teen. A report was made to the police station while several searches were fruitless.
It was not until yesterday afternoon that news came when a resident enquired if Malika was located. “I said no and he tell me how they find somebody like she in the canal,” she said.
She alerted other relatives who visited the scene and had their worst fears confirmed.
Hamilton’s grandmother, Dorrell Cambridge, said when she heard that the young woman had gone to swim at the canal, she found it strange. “I know she don’t go there and swim and other than anywhere she go, she does come home before she mother come from work,” she explained.
She said after 9pm passed on Monday and Hamilton did not return, she became worried and went to inform her mother, who was attending a birthday party in the village.
“Everybody meh see I ask and got nothing, now look how she gone,” the elderly woman sobbed.
Hamilton, who was the eldest of three children, had won the crown last year in the Ann’s Grove Calabash pageant and was named second runner-up this year.
