The worst fears of two Berbice families were con-firmed yesterday morning after the bodies of their relatives, who had gone missing on Monday evening after being stranded on a sand bank at Number 63 Beach, were discovered.
The search now continues for the third person as her young son holds out hope that his mother who singlehandedly raised him will be found alive.
Dead are Alwin Joseph, 30, a welder, of P Chandishawweg, District Paramaribo and Babuni Harihar, also known as ‘Doris’, 75, a pensioner, of Number Two Village, East Canje Berbice.
Still missing is Sherida Hussain also known as ‘Sherry’, 49, of Lot 274 Pilot Street, New Amsterdam.
According to a source in Suriname, they have detain-ed two persons for ques-tioning. They are said to have transported the trio to No. 63. The source said that the captain of the boat, a Guyanese, and a workman visited the Corantijn Politie (Police) Station in Nickerie for questioning yesterday.
The source yesterday also stressed, that they are in contact with their counter-parts in Guyana.
Samantha Joseph, sister of Alwin Joseph and who lives in Suriname, yesterday said she had visited the station three times since her brother went missing.
According to her, the captain and the workman along with one of their wives, who is related to Harihar, were at the police station in Suriname yester-day, while she was there. “The police at the station told me not to speak with them”.
However, Joseph said before going to the station she had already spoken with the boat captain who was insisting that he dropped the persons off at the shore. “He keep saying how he drop them at the shore but that the place was dark so he don’t know”.
Joseph yesterday stressed that persons must be held accountable for the actions which led to the death of her brother, a father of three young children.
She said her brother was a hard worker and the sole provider for his family.
According to the woman, her brother, a Guyanese would often travel to Guyana to meet with relatives.
Spotted
Fisherman, Ramdial Lakeraj, 50, of Number 65 Village, Corentyne around 6.30 am yesterday spotted Joseph’s body which had washed up on the Number 60 Foreshore. No mark of vio-lence was seen on his body.
An uncle who positively identified the body to be that of Joseph, told Stabroek News yesterday morning, “He wear a soldier vest and short pants and he body still fresh”.
Around 7 am yesterday, fisherman, Latchman, 63, of Number 70 Village, Corentyne, was setting his net when he discovered the body of Harihar further up the Number 69 foreshore in some bushes.
A black and white Adidas haversack was found about five feet away from her body with some clothing and an identification card. Further up, a travelling bag and black purse were found with clothing and her identification card.
Her granddaughter, Nadira Valdez, who positively identified her grandmother’s body, told Stabroek News, “Girl they found the body, granny dead”.
Both bodies are presently at the Anthony Funeral Parlour awaiting post-mortem examinations.
The trio boarded a boat in Suriname on Monday evening on the backtrack route to Guyana. Sometime just around 7 pm, they were dropped off at a sandbank at the Number 63 Beach.
Hussain called her son, Joshua Samaroo around 7.30 pm and informed him that they were surrounded by waist-high water. “She was saying that they’re off at some bank and the water is up to her waist.” She also said that she couldn’t see land.
Joseph’s sister, Samantha, contacted him around 8 pm, at which point he pleaded with her to make contact with the boat captain and ask that he (the boat captain) return and pick them up since they were not able to find land.
Samantha said after she was unable to get onto the boat captain she contacted relatives on the Corentyne who rushed to the beach, while Samaroo after receiving the call also went to the beach.
Relatives of Harihar in Guyana were contacted just around 9 pm by relatives in Suriname who relayed that they were unable to get on to her. Harihar’s relatives then went immediately to the scene where they met Hussain’s and Joseph’s relatives.
Both Hussain and Harihar had ventured over to Suriname late last year to meet with relatives and were eager to return home.
In a statement yesterday, Minister of Public Works Juan Edghill said he deeply regretted the unfortunate situation and expressed condolences to the families.
“As Minister responsible for transportation, I take this opportunity to appeal to all Guyanese to desist from using illegal crossings known as `backtrack’ considering the danger.
“Please be assured that we are examining various measures and options with our Surinamese counterparts to reopen the Guyana/Suriname border for safe travel. We urge all Guyanese to take the necessary precautions and comply with all COVID-19 protocols to ensure the safety and wellbeing of all our people”, he said.
