(Trinidad Guardian) Even as the search for missing cousins Rykeel Dookna (left) and Rikeil Cumberbatch (right) continued yesterday, the family’s fears increased after two decomposing bodies were found floating in the mangrove at Pioneer Drive, Sea Lots, late in the afternoon.
The discovery around 4 pm sent the Hunters’ Search and Rescue Team to the area so they could determine if they were the men they had spent the last two days searching for in Arima.
While there was no confirmation from the police up to 8 pm as to the identities of the victims, some social media news outlets declared it was them, leaving the grieving family wondering what was really going on.
Dookna, 18, and Cumberbatch, 21, were last seen around 2 am on Saturday (September 14).
Their rental car was found idling in some bushes at 10 am that morning, along the Blanchisseuse Road in Arima.
However, there was no sign of either man.
Calls to their cell phones also went unanswered.
Confirming the Hunters’ Search and Rescue Team had spent the day yesterday combing the terrain leading outwards from where the car had been found, as well as the Samaroo Village area, the group’s leader Vallence Rambharat said they had not turned up any clues as to their whereabouts.
However, he too expressed concerns after learning that two bodies were found floating in the mangrove at Sea Lots.
Guardian Media was told the decomposing bodies were extremely bloated and in an advanced state of decomposition, leading the search and rescue team to speculate that the men had been killed and dumped in the water prior to Saturday.
One body was retrieved before 6 pm but there was some difficulty recovering the second body.
Last evening, police said they were hoping that the cousins’ relatives would have turned up in Sea Lots to help with the initial identification of the bodies. They said due to the bloating of the bodies, it was impossible for officers to do so based on their descriptions.
Dookna is of mixed descent, five feet, four inches tall, slim build and brown in complexion with a plaited and shaved hairstyle. He was last seen wearing a black jersey, a pair of long, black jeans and a pair of white sneakers. Cumberbatch is of African descent, five feet, five inches tall, slim build and brown in complexion with a cornrow hairstyle. He was last seen wearing a white jersey, a pair of blue three-quarter jeans and a white and blue sneakers.
Anyone with information on the missing men can call the Arima police at 667- 3563 or 800-TIPS; or contact the police at 555, 999, 911, or call any police station.
