RACHAEL STRANGLED

This was the finding of an autopsy done by Dr Hughvon des Vignes yesterday at the Forensic Science Centre in St James. The autopsy showed that someone placed their hands around the 17-year-old girl’s throat and squeezed until she died from a lack of oxygen. The victim had abrasions over her left eye and on her left and right hip.

Further checks revealed that she was not sexually assaulted in any way prompting police investigators to believe that Ramkissoon may have known her killer and may have put up a fight with the person or persons who killed her.

Yesterday, Homicide Investigations Bureau detectives told Newsday they are working on the theory that Ramkissoon was picked up last Friday by someone she had a close interaction with.

Her cell phone records are being checked to ascertain who she spoke with last Friday before she left her Talparo home clad in school uniform.

Officers of the Police Cybercrime unit are also checking the same telephone records to ascertain who she communicated with regularly and based on this information, persons will be interviewed.

Yesterday, detectives ruled out a theory that Ramkissoon may have been abducted by someone whose intention was to rape or assault her.

On Saturday and Sunday homicide officers went into the Talparo area and began canvassing in an effort to seek out any persons who may have key information to assist them in the investigation.

However all the persons spoken to were unable to assist in any meaningful way to the murder probe. Police returned to the area yesterday and have begun profiling PH (private hire) drivers and taxi drivers in the area to ascertain if any of them may have matters pending in court for serious crimes including rape. On Friday, Ramkissoon missed the school bus and contacted a relative who also attends the same school asking that relative to ask the bus driver if he could pick her up. The driver allegedly refused prompting Ramkissoon to seek public transportation.

The girl’s relative claimed that she only travelled with drivers she knew prompting police to believe that the person who murdered Ramkissoon may have known her.

Last Friday a hunter stumbled upon the body of Ramkissoon at Balata Trace, San Raphael. She was found fully clad in her uniform, lying face down.

Yesterday, Education Minister Anthony Garcia visited Ramkissoon’s school, to bring his personal commiserations to students and teachers. He assured that his ministry will do all in its power to ensure the safety of students outside of school hours. “This is a tragedy that affects all of is. We must bind together to ensure we do not have a reoccurence of this kind of thing,” Garcia told reporters yesterday at the school. School principal Jesslyn Ramlal said that the entire student population and teachers were left traumatised by Ramkissoon’s murder. “We were all left traumatised by Rachael’s death. Teachers and students alike, we are all distraught,” Ramlal said in a brief interview.