‘Steffie played with dolls and teddy bears’

MEERA BOODRAM-NARINESINGH, mother of Kimberly Stephanie Boodram-Narinesingh, the 11-year-old girl found dead at Toco on Monday, insisted yesterday that her youngest child was murdered. She also dispelled claims her daughter was romantically involved with 24-year-old suicide victim Jairam Baldeo, and added it was a “case of an animal in human form taking advantage of a little angel.” She said when she saw her daughter’s body on Monday, the throat was slit and there were several marks of violence about her body. In grief after the funeral service yesterday, Narinesingh, 35, said, “My angel was tortured.” On a sofa at her El Socorro home yesterday, she described Baldeo, the man who was found dead, lying on top of her daughter’s body, as an animal, a child molester, and a menace. She is happy that he ended his life, but she is adamant that her daughter did not deserve to be killed in such a cruel manner.

According to Meera, her daughter was childish, acted like any 11-year-old and was never involved in a relationship with Baldeo. “Steffie played with dolls and teddy bears and she did not know what being in love was,” said a grieving Meera. The mother of two other girls, Kamini, 14, and Shalini, 15, said she considered Jairam as a neighbour and never knew he was “eyeing” her youngest daughter.She said her daughter went to school and came straight home. “She was never allowed to go anywhere without her elders, so all that talk about Steffie being sexually involved with Baldeo is a lie,” said Meera. The autopsy report showed that Stephanie was sexually active. Meera said she was supposed to move into her home at Cumuto by Christmas, and Baldeo had assisted in the construction of the house. She feels that Baldeo, who had attempted suicide once, was “sick in his mind” and had planned the episode with her daughter. Last Saturday, Stephanie told relatives she was going to a nearby shop to purchase a cake. The shopkeeper claimed he saw Stephanie being forced into a car.

He reported the matter to Stephanie’s relatives and a report was made to the Barataria police. Between Saturday and Sunday, the girl’s relatives searched for the missing child to no avail. Late Sunday, they received information from the driver who transported Stephanie and Baldeo, that he dropped them off at Toco. On Monday, Meera received the shocking news that the bodies of her daughter and Baldeo had been found in Toco. She said Stephanie would have celebrated her 12th birthday yesterday, and she had already indicated to her daughter that she could not afford a birthday party but had planned to buy two chocolates for her. She had also planned to cook a meal of fried rice, chow mein and potato salad for her daughter and take her later in the afternoon for ice cream. “My baby would be at home with me, safe and happy, but now she is no more,” said a grieving Meera. Police have since interviewed the driver of the car who took the child and Baldeo to Toco.

He said Baldeo bought weedicide on the way to Toco, but he never knew that Baldeo had suicide on his mind. He also revealed that Stephanie and Baldeo were talking and laughing in the car, and the girl did not appear to be frightened. Police investigators believe that Baldeo had planned the murder/suicide. A knife found at the scene where the bodies were discovered was sent for tests. An autopsy at the Forensic Science Centre on Tuesday revealed that Baldeo died from ingesting a poisonous weedicide, while the cause of Stephanie’s death remained inconclusive. Contents of her stomach were sent for more tests. Police investigators said yesterday they were awaiting the report from the pathologist before classifying her death. Stephanie was cremated yesterday at the Waterloo Cremation site. (See Page 7A)