-as mom and son laid to rest
By Michael Jordan
Tearful relatives and friends bade farewell to Melissa Arokium and seven year old Anthony, as detectives stepped up their efforts to unmask a vicious killer who is suspected to be living in the same Rose Hall, Berbice community as the mother and son that he butchered.
Several mourners turned up for the emotional service, which was held at the St. Xavier Roman Catholic Church at Rose Hall. The victims were then laid to rest in the churchyard cemetery.
Meanwhile, detectives from the Force’s Major Crimes Unit have intensified their efforts to make a breakthrough.
Information provided to Big Smith News Watch seem to indicate that the killer had intimate knowledge of Melissa Arokium’s habit of opening her doors early in the morning while doing her cooking and house-cleaning.
The three-bedroom house has three doors, and a side door was reportedly found unlocked.
All clues seem to suggest that the killer lives in close proximity to the victims’ Lot 189 Mangrove Street property.
He is believed to have entered via an unlocked door and attacked Ms. Arokium in her hallway.
The killer then hacked Anthony to death as he lay sleeping under a mosquito net.
Police have stated that they believe that mother and son were murdered between 06.30 a.m. and 1.00 p.m. on Wednesday, August 23.
There are at least two empty lots and an abandoned house near to the Arokium home, and the area is overgrown with bushes.
Ms. Arokium’s 33-year-old brother Serrana Arokium, who is a cane harvester, lives in an adjoining apartment in her residence.
She also has a 38-year-old neighbor, Deo Narris.
Relatives have confirmed that gold jewellery that Ms. Arokium always wore was missing, but the brutality of the attack has led to the conclusion that retaliation over some perceived grievance was the killer’s primary motive.
Melissa Arokium was chopped on her left arm and left side. She was also almost beheaded from chop wounds behind her neck.
Seven year old Anthony sustained four deep incised wounds to the forehead, face, mouth and neck.
WHO?
Some have mentioned an individual who was allegedly seen in close proximity to Arokium residence prior to the discovery of the bodies. But other relatives said Melissa was a friendly individual who seemed to have no enemies.
“She and everybody was friendly,” a relative said. “She was not the sort of person to go looking for trouble.
“My first thought was that some mentally ill person did it. No sane person would do this.”
Relatives said that Ms. Arokium’s 26-year-old brother found the bodies after he went to the residence to relieve himself.
“He see her (Melissa’s) bike in yard. He blow and call but didn’t get no answer. He open the gate and go in, turn the door (knob) and it open. He push the door and see her on the ground. He then come and tell me, and I tell him call the police,” a relative said.
They said that Serrana Arokium, the other brother who has an apartment at the back of the same property, was unaware of the tragedy.
They said the 33-year-old cane harvester had left for work at around 04.00 a.m. on Wednesday, August 23, and returned at around 11.00 a.m.
Relatives said he ‘soaked down’ his dirty clothes when he returned home. He later went out, and eventually learned that his sister and nephew had been murdered.
The suspicion is that the killer managed to slip away and conceal his bloody garments, which may include footwear, because he lives in close proximity to the scene.