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East La Penitence drowning…Suspicions of foul play surface after PM

Dec 08, 2014 News

Suspicions of foul play have surfaced following a Post Mortem Examination (PM) performed on the remains of Toolsidas Mandra, the homeless man whose body was pulled from a trench near the East La Penitence Police Station two Fridays ago.
The examination which was performed by Government Pathologist, Dr. Nehaul Singh at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) has suggested that the 42-year-old man was beaten before he drowned.
According to the PM, there were severe lacerations to Toolsidas’ head and his face was disfigured.
The homeless man’s relatives are now assuming that the individual who injured their loved one had also pushed him into the trench.
His relatives have also lashed out at the ranks at the East La Penitence Police Station for not assisting Mandra.
They claimed that they were informed that Mandra went to the police station to make a report but was chased out of the compound.
During an interview yesterday, Neville De-Santos, the dead man’s brother-in-law, said that when he was informed of the tragedy, he immediately travelled to the scene with other relatives to confirm the terrifying news.
At the scene, De-Santos said that the police made no effort to assist in pulling Mandra’s body from the trench although it was clearly visible.
He accused an officer, who he referred to as “fat boy”, of laughing instead of helping the relatives.
“I was there and I went into the trench with my clothes and pulled his body out. There was a guy who helped me lift his body up and I gave him $1000. The police did not help us and I am aware that the body belongs to the state until the PM. The police weren’t supposed to allow anyone to even touch the body,” an upset De-Santos said.
He added that Mandra’s face was battered and it was beyond recognition when the body was pulled from the trench hours after he had drowned.
“We identified him by his clothes…If we didn’t go there the body would have left right in that trench. The police said that he cannot swim and the trench shallow, but I walked in,” the relative said.
In defense of its ranks, the Force issued a statement saying that when the ranks at the East La Penitence Police Station were informed of the incident, several ranks including a Sub-ordinate Officer responded.
The statement added that with the use of flashlights, the ranks made efforts to locate the man in the trench but were unsuccessful.
However, Mandra’s relatives are refuting the police’s statement.
De-Santos even went on to say that when he received the Post Mortem report, he went back to the station to show the ranks the death certificate and informed them of the latest development.
“When I went, they refused to listen to me and they said that Mandra drowned. It is clear that Mandra’s life wasn’t of much subsequence to them,” De-Santos related.
He added that, “He does go by his sister everyday and go back to the La Penitence Night Shelter to sleep. He drinks and that is why he would normally go to the shelter in the nights and go by his family during the days,” De-Santos related.

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