Abducted woman’s body found in shallow grave

THE search for kidnapped San Juan proprietress, Samdaye Rampersad, ended tragically with the gruesome discovery of her decomposed body in a shallow grave in Claxton Bay. The grisly discovery was made at 1 pm yesterday by a party of policemen from Port-of-Spain CID and Homicide Bureau (North). A police report stated that the lawmen were led to the area by two suspects whom they detained in connection with the incident. According to the report, two men from Diamond Village, Claxton Bay, and San Fernando, were arrested on Wednesday in connection with Rampersad’s kidnapping.

Rampersad, 45, was snatched by three gunmen on November 26, 2005, while she was standing in front of her mini-mart at Irving Street, San Juan. The woman kicked and screamed while she was forced into a waiting Nissan B-15 Sentra. Rampersad’s brother, Mervyn, had made several appeals to the kidnappers to release his sister. At about 9 am yesterday, jeep loads of heavily armed policemen went to a canefield at Springvale, Claxton Bay. A National Security helicopter was also used. A businessman’s tractor was used by the police officers to create a path through the canefield to get to the grave.

The body, police said, was badly decomposed and was found lying face down in the dirt. A district medical officer viewed the remains and ordered its removal to the Forensic Science Centre in St James. Less than three weeks ago, the body of San Fernando mechanic, Nigel Allen, 32, was also found by police in a shallow canefield grave in Claxton Bay. Two persons from the area were arrested and charged with that murder.