Contractor charged with murder of Parika woman

Sep 12, 2023 Court Stories, Features / Columnists, News

Kaieteur News – Forty-five-year-old construction worker Randolph Reece was on Monday charged with the murder of a woman whose burnt remains were found a week ago at a house at Parika, East Bank Essequibo (EBE).

Man charged and remanded to prison: Randolph Reece

Reece made his first court appearance at the Leonora Magistrates’ Court before Magistrate Zamilla Alli-Seepaul where the charge was read to him. He was not required to plead and was remanded to prison. The matter was adjourned to November 13, 2023, for reports.

This publication reported that on September 5, 2023, the charred remains of 29-year-old, Shannen Obermuller-Mohamed of Parika, EBE, were discovered around 22:10hrs at the construction site of her home in Parika.

An autopsy which was conducted on the burnt body revealed that the individual died from a ‘blunt force trauma ‘to the head. The pathologist also opined that the woman was killed and her body was then set alight.

Relatives told police that Mohamed went to the construction site around 09:00hrs on Tuesday but failed to return home. Calls to her mobile phone went unanswered and relatives became worried.

Dead: Shannen Obermuller-Mohamed

They began inquiring about her whereabouts but no one knew where she was. At around 22:00hrs that evening, family members decided to visit the construction site in search of her. When they arrived, they reportedly saw a fire and the contractor who Mohamed had hired to build her house was seen hurriedly leaving the scene. The woman’s relatives noted that the man walked to the end of the yard and disappeared in the darkness.

According to the police, family members used several buckets of water from a nearby stand pipe and extinguished the fire. “After this, they observed what appeared to be a human skull among the debris”, police stated. They immediately notified police and investigators were sent to the scene.

When ranks arrived, they removed a burnt skull and torso from among the debris. Crime scene investigators also found a sledge hammer and crowbar next to the charred remains. An investigation was launched immediately and police learnt that the contractor might have murdered Mohammed just moments after she arrived at the construction site on Tuesday morning.

A neighbour had reportedly seen him burning wood and other materials in the yard around 10:00hrs that day. A video which subsequently surfaced depicted a man adding wood and other debris to a fire at the construction site.

The contractor is said to be well-known to Mohamed and her relatives and reportedly does “quality work” for them.

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burnt body, charged, Construction worker, court, Parika woman

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