The Lilawatee Murder 1950

Dec 01, 2024 Letters

The Lilawatee Murder 1950

Dear Editor,

The year 1950 dawned with the shocking murder of a young girl during an obeah ritual in Stanleytown, New Amsterdam.

It was alleged that Kathleen Fullerton, a housewife had a dream that she would get rich from Dutch money buried in her yard if she sacrificed a boy child. She discussed the dream with her spiritualist brother Eric Benfield, who planned a sacrifice. He organized a feast with music at his home at lot 57 Stanleytown and procured a boy to become the human sacrifice, but his reputed wife, who was not in favour of the nefarious plan, encouraged the boy to abscond.

Benfield, enraged at this set-back, made several attempts to procure other boys without success.

Time was running out and in desperation he enticed his neighbour’s six-year-old daughter, Lilawattee to his feast and prepared her for the sacrifice.

Doolarie, the mother of the child, missed her and after making frantic searches, reported to the Police who advised her to make another search and to report the results the following morning.

Meanwhile, residents became suspicious at the weird happenings in Benfield’s house and demanded that he allow them to search there for the missing child. Benfield retaliated with abuses, while his brother-in-law Jeremiah Fullerton stood guard at the entrance to the yard with an axe.

It was during that time Benfield was seen to carry a bundle towards an outdoor latrine in the yard.

The next morning a search party led by Assistant Superintendent Freddie Cannon found Lilawattee’s body at the bottom of the latrine pit. A post mortem examination revealed that faeces were in her stomach which indicated that the child had been placed there while she was still alive.

Two Non-Commissioned Officers, Sergeant 3832 Greene and Cpl. 3978 Philips who had failed to act promptly on the report of the missing child were reduced in rank. It was felt that had they gone to Benfield’s place on the night of the feast the child’s life might have been saved.

Kathleen Fullerton, her husband Jeremiah Fullerton, her brother Eric Benfield and his wife Dorothy Brutus were tried. Dorothy Brutus was acquitted but the others were convicted. Despite a petition to the Governor, the deceased were hanged on the morning of 4th October 1950 (75 years ago this month and so Kathleen Fullerton become the second women in the history of the country to be hanged.)

Yours Sincerely

Frank De Abreu

(The Lilawatee Murder 1950)

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Dutch money, Eric Benfield, Lilawattee, New Amsterdam, Stanleytown

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