Sookranie Singh, the mother of the recently slain domestic violence victim Omela Singh, believes that had the police been more dedicated to their jobs, her daughter might still be alive.
In the days leading up to her murder at the hands of her former partner, Onkar Singh, the now deceased had visited a police station in Georgetown for service of a restraining order. However, the woman, who could not recall which station her daughter visited, said she was told that an officer told the woman that she needed to make the request at the police station nearest to where the suspect was residing.
The nearest police station was Diamond/Grove Police Station but when Omela Singh turned up to make a request between June 23 and June 24, she was told that the officer responsible was not in and was told to return on Monday, June 28, when the officer would be available to get the process underway. Monday would never come for Omela Singh as she was brutally stabbed around midday on Sunday, June 27, and later succumbed to her injuries at the Georgetown Public Hospital some hours later. The suspect subsequently took his own life by ingesting poison and was found the following day.
Sookranie Singh posited that had the police followed through, her grandchildren would not be orphans today. The suspect, she said, had been making threats to both her and her daughter, which was why Omela Singh had gone to get a restraining order against him.
Sookranie Singh also said that sometime before the birth of the deceased’s last child, who is now two-years-old, her daughter had secured a restraining order against the man and the two had followed up with court proceedings. Sookranie Singh said her daughter was in an abusive relationship which led to the order. However, the victim and the suspect would subsequently return to living together.
Sookranie Singh said when her daughter and the suspect began living together again, she assumed things would be better as they started attending church together. But eventually they stopped and the man began abusing the woman again. This led to their separation and the now deceased moving out of their Diamond home to go live with her children at her mother’s home at La Parfaite Harmonie two months prior to her death.
According to a previous police report, on the day in question, the 49-year-old suspect visited the 26-year-old woman at her residence during which time the two had an argument. The suspect dealt the woman several cuffs and stabs about her body before making good his escape.
Neighbours, who were alerted, picked the woman up in an unconscious state and rushed her to the West Demerara Regional Hospital, from where she was transferred to the Georgetown Public Hospital where she died.
The police, Sookranie Singh said, had always been slow in responding to their requests and emergencies. She said that following the stabbing, which occurred around midday on June 27, calls had been made to La Parfaite Harmonie Police Station but the police did not arrive at their home until a couple of hours later when her daughter had already been taken to the hospital by neighbours.
Sookranie Singh, who was not at home during the attack, noted that she had gone to visit relatives at Diamond that day. Her daughter called her before she succumbed and informed her of what had happened.
It’s been a little more than a month since the killing and Sookranie Singh, who is now the sole guardian of the couple’s children, ages 7, 6 and 2, said it has not been easy. She is currently looking into getting public assistance for the children.
