The 12-year-old was charged with manslaughter, granted bail in the sum of $75,000 and placed in the care of his parents. His brother was charged with murder and remanded into custody. They appeared before magistrate Siumongal Ramsaran in the Couva Magistrates Court and are scheduled to reappear on September 14.

The charges were laid early yesterday morning by Sgt Susan John of the Region 3 Homicide Bureau after receiving advice from Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions Joan Honore-Paul shortly after 11 pm on Wednesday.

In court yesterday the parents of the accused wept as the charges were read to them.

Okera was last seen alive at about 3pm on Thursday last while he was selling vegetables near the Bethel House of God church at Calcutta, Freeport.

When his mother Abia Williams called him on his cellular phone at about 4 pm, she got no response and decided to go to the church and look for her son but he was not found.

She went to the Couva Police Station and reported him missing. Police visited the area and searched. They found traces of blood on the church compound and later found Okera’s body floating in a pond at the back of the church.

An autopsy revealed that he was stabbed at least 15 times.

Okera was laid to rest on Wednesday after a funeral service at the same church which allowed him to sell his vegetables, including melongene which he planted, to held support his siblings with their schooling.

At the funeral, Couva South MP Rudranath Indarsingh described Okera as a respectable businessman even at his tender age.

“He should be given a national award for single handedly being able to provide for a family of six,” Indarsingh said.

Minister Kenneth Bynoe said, “While Emmanuel did could not go to school himself, he was seen accompanying his siblings to school each morning on foot.”

The woman, who asked not to be identified, was one of 31 employees identified to receive retrenchment letters yesterday from the GML’s Human Resources (HR) Department; located at its Chaguanas head office.

“When I found out retrenchment was going to happen, I knew that being one of the last people hired, there was a possibility of my being retrenched.

So when I got the news on Wednesday to come to HR today (Thursday) to collect a letter, I wasn’t entirely surprised but I was disappointed.

The retrenched GML employee shared that when she went into HR yesterday, “they asked if I knew what I was here for. I said I had a fair idea.” “They then proceeded to tell me the company was going through (restructuring) and I was one of those selected; based entirely on the last in, first out criteria. HR gave me a listing of jobs available across all of the ANSA McAL Group; as you know, (GML) is a subsidiary.

They said if I was interested in anything, I could apply and (if hired), my retrenchment would be shifted to me moving over to continued employment in a different sector of the group.” Asked if she intended to do so, the GML employee told Newsday, “No. Nothing that I’m aware of applies to me in terms of my skills.” Newsday attempted to speak with senior management of GML but neither calls nor emails were responded to as at press time yesterday

This time, according to their 69-yearold legal guardian, the harassment is coming from a neighbour who, he claims, positions himself in front of their home exposing his private parts and scaring the girls to the point they are now afraid even to venture outdoors on their own.

The latest incident, according to the relative, occurred just after 8 pm on Sunday and was captured on camera and uploaded to social media.

The video was recorded by a neighbour.

Newsday received a copy of the footage in which a man is seen removing his trousers and exposing himself.

A report was made to the Couva Police Station and one of the girls was taken twice to the station the following day but relatives said no statement was recorded from her.

Newsday was also informed it was not the first time the villager had engaged in the lewd and disgusting behaviour while on the public road.

But despite the many reports to the police, he has never been charged.

“All they would do is come and warn him,” the relative said.

“And as they turn their backs, he will behave the same way again.” The relative said because of what he calls the police inaction, he was moved to raise his concerns over the safety of his young relatives at a recent police town meeting in the Central Division.

He said promises were made to investigate but, to date, the situation remains the same. The pensioner is now appealing for help from the authorities to protect the girls who are 11 and 14 years old from further psychological damage.

“These children are still healing from what they went through in their early lives and don’t deserve to be exposed to this kind of behaviour again. They even ‘fraid to go in the front porch. And you know how children like to go in parlour? They don’t even want to go.” Recalling was happened on Sunday, the man said the 11-yearold girl was in the gallery when she ran inside and told him what the man was doing.

He came outside in time to see the man exposing himself and making suggestive remarks towards the child. Relatives said they called E999 and also visited the police station but police visited and just warned the man and his relatives who were in the road liming.

Newsday spoke to a senior officer who confirmed that a report was made. They said they have warned the man about his behaviour and had spoken to him on several occasions in the past but, so far, there is no evidence to have him charged with any offence.

Yesterday, senior members of the Police Complaints Division and the Professional Standards Bureau said they were not assigned to investigate the SRP.

Newsday also contacted the Transit Police where the SRP was assigned prior to her suspension and head of the unit Superintendent Anthony Bernard said he was not engaged in any such investigation.

Sources revealed the investigator would be appointed upon the return of Acting Commissioner Stephen Williams who was out of the country and was due back tonight.

It’s emblazoned in my memory that Wendell Mottley won silver in the 400 metres, Edwin Roberts (perhaps the athlete with the biggest heart ever to represent TT ) won bronze in the 200 metres, and the team of Edwin Skinner, Kent Bernard, Roberts and Mottley won bronze in the 4×400-metres relay (many still refer to it as the “mile relay” even though it’s about 9.3 metres less than a mile).

Fast forward to 2017, and we have the quartet of Jarrin Solomon, Jereem Richards, Machel Cedenio and Lalonde Gordon winning gold at the World Championships in London.

In 2015, Cedenio with “an incredible sprint kick down the straight” saw us take gold in the 4×400 at the Toronto Pan Am Games. His teammates were Renny Quow, Solomon and Emanuel Mayers.

But I suspect that not many would remember that TT broke (and still holds) the world record for the actual one-mile relay (4×440 yards) at the 1966 Commonwealth Games in Kingston, Jamaica.

The TT team comprised Lennox Yearwood, Bernard, Roberts and Mottley (running in that order). In the individual quarter- mile run, Mottley had already won gold in a Games record of 45.2 (times were measured to 1 decimal place in those days) and Bernard had taken home silver, so we were favourites to win the relay.

After two legs, and cheered on by the partisan home crowd, the Jamaicans were leading TT . But Roberts ran a magnificent third leg and handed over to Mottley with a significant lead. With that beautiful, effortless, gliding stride, Mottley romped home an easy winner in 3:02.8, smashing the then world record by nearly two seconds. Jamaica faded to fourth.

You can watch the race here: https:// www.youtube.com/ watch?v=dTYCGsTI56g.

Or you can just search for “1966 4×440 relay” on YouTube. The commentary begins, “The last track event of these eighth Commonwealth Games …

In lane 7, Trinidad, the favourites …” Some time in the 1970s, distances in all international athletics were changed from yards to metres so this world record would stand forever or until there’s a change back to yards (if a movement in the US has its way).

It would also be interesting to compare how much money we spent on the 1964/66 teams and the 2015/17 teams. Even after adjusting for inflation, it should be a lesson to those who believe that throwing money after athletes/problems is the only way to make them better/solve them.

NOEL KALICHARAN via email

Headley is of African descent, five feet, six inches tall, slim built, dark brown in complexion with short curly hair. She was last seen wearing a moss green dress and a pair of slippers.

Anyone with information on her whereabouts is asked to contact the police at 999, 555, 911 or any police station or call 800-TIPS.

The play features Nikki Crosby, Richard Ragoobarsingh, Debra Boucaud Mason, Penelope Spencer, Bradley Logan and Aaron Schneider. It is directed by Boucaud Mason and Ragoobarsingh.

The National Hurricane Centre in an advisory posted on its website at 5 pm yesterday said an Air Force Reserve Hurricane Hunter aircraft found a well-defined circulation in the low pressure area east of the Lesser Antilles, with the center near a cluster of sheared, but strong, convection.

The Centre explained that a tropical storm warning meant that tropical storm conditions were expected somewhere within 24 to 36 hours while a watch meant that conditions were possible within 24 to 36 hours.

The Centre said tropical storm conditions were expected to first reach the Lesser Antilles within the warning area early today.

As for the rainfall, they said Harvey was expected to produce rainfall totals of two to four inches across portions of the Windward Islands from Martinique southward to Grenada.

These rains, they said could cause life-threatening flash floods and mudslides.

In an information bulletin, the Trinidad and Tobago Meteorological Service said the leading periphery of the system was expected to affect Barbados last night with rainfall totals of 50 to 100 mm as well as gusty winds across portions of the Windward Islands, north of Trinidad and Tobago from last night into today.

They said, Tropical Storm Harvey posed no immediate threat to this country.

Wendy Izahark, 45, an employee at the San Fernando Magistrates Court, appeared in the Princes Town Magistrates Court to answer the charge arising out of an alleged incident on Tuesday night in Barrackpore. She was arrested and taken to the Princes Town Police Station where she was charged.

Yesterday, Magistrate Nalini Singh read the charge to Izahark, of Lengua Village, Princes Town, that she made a false report, causing wasteful employment of police time.

The charge, laid by Corporal Neil Nanan of the Princes Town CID. Izahark pleaded not guilty when the charge was read to her by the magistrate.

Attorneys Subhas Panday and Kiran Panday appeared on Izahark’s behalf and made an application for bail to be granted.

Panday (S) said Izahark has no previous convictions or pending matters and she is not a flight risk.

Prosecutor Sgt Shazard Mohammed did not object. The magistrate granted Izahark her own bail in the sum of $10,000 and ordered her to reappear next Thursday.

Relatives said that Stevelin Showvanna Taylor, of Sixth Company Road, Moruga, was never the same since the incident. She also began hearing voices which, they believe, led her to eventually take her life.

Reports are at about 2 pm on August 3, relatives saw Taylor in the roadway near her home with her lower body on fire. After outing the flames, she was taken to the San Fernando General Hospital where she died last week Thursday.

“I feel this thing told her to do that because they (relatives) said Showvanna was not even bawling although both feet were on fire,” her grandmother Cynthia Jointe, 73, said.

“She never told me directly how the thing happened at the school, but after the incident she used to say, ‘Mama I am hearing voices in my head.’” Taylor, who once worked as a cashier at a supermarket in San Fernando, began having sleeping problems which relatives directly attributed the incident at the school.

Jointe recalled that back in November 2010, when the incident occurred, Taylor was in Form Three but refused to continue her studies at Basseterre Village, Moruga school.

She completed her secondary school education at another institution in San Fernando.

Taylor was among at least 16 students who fell ill and had to be given medical treatment. Religious groups hosted an interfaith service at the school.

Jointe said Taylor, “a nice child”, lived a tormented life although relatives repeatedly searched for spiritual help to heal her.

“One minute she was good and normal, and the next she was not. Her mother (Sherry Ann Jointe) had carried her to the psychiatric clinic but that was not any use.

Sometimes she would past me straight without saying ‘morning’ or anything.” Once, relatives took her to a church in Princes Town to have a religious leader/ spiritual healer to pray and ‘heal’ her.

“When they reached, she came out the car and refused to enter the building. Instead she walked back home. That was the jumbie not wanting her to go inside.”