Mysterious death probe continues amid criticism

As criticisms of government and the police’s handling of the case simmer, Guyanese authorities said Thursday they had hired a retired Canadian federal investigator to probe the death of a 11-year-old schoolgirl who died at a coastal hotel resort under mysterious circumstances two weeks ago.

The security ministry said Leonard Mc Coshen, a retired suspicious death investigator of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) will join the probe into the death of Adrianna Younge whose body was fished out of the Double Day Hotel swimming pool hours after she had been reported missing by relatives. The family said that they had been on a day outing at the resort, about 20 miles west of the city.

Her death and what is widely believed to be a lackluster investigation by local police, had sparked clashes between police, supporters of the family and criminal elements who had infiltrated protestors during an autopsy of her body. Police fired tear gas and rubber bullets, injuring several people. Two others were shot dead while allegedly committing robberies.

Responding to the demonstrations as stores, offices, schools and embassies had shuttered their doors, authorities imposed an overnight curfew but have since lifted it as the trouble had died down.

National outrage was sparked by allegations that police had prevented the family and others from searching the hotel once she had gone missing. Officers even reported that she had left the compound with a mature man in a vehicle but were later forced to retract the statement after family members had reviewed nearby CCTV footage showing that Adrianna had never left the resort.

And what appeared to have aggravated the nation even more was the fact that the pool was searched several times by different groups of people. No body was found in the water until the next day. Her dad, Subrian Younge said he remains mystified by the sudden appearance of her body in the pool, cotton puffs stuffed into her nose. He is adamant that his daughter was murdered and has refused to accept autopsy reports showing she had drowned.

Family members say they think she has been the victim of a bizarre religious ritual that has mirrored the death of a young man in the very pool more than a decade ago. The proprietor’s son and a staffer were freed of murder.

The ministry said the retired officer has had more than 30 years of experience probing suspicious deaths and he is being flown in at the behest of President Irfaan Ali as he is anxious to ensure transparency.

The police, meanwhile, said in a statement that body fluids and other samples have been sent to the National Medical Services (NMS) Laboratories in the United States in addition to investigative work by Mount Sinai’s board-certified forensic and diagnostic pathologists in the United States.

“The purpose of the post-mortem toxicology analysis is to detect, identify, and quantify drugs, alcohol, poisons, or other toxic substances present in the deceased’s body. This analysis helps determine whether any of these substances were present and, if so, whether they contributed to the death of the deceased,” police said.