News
Elizabeth Gonzales
A private autopsy on Tuesday revealed that court secretary Andrea Bharatt died of blunt trauma to her head.
Whether these injuries were caused by an intentional physical attack, falling or falling over a precipice remains a mystery.
The autopsy – done the day after an initial examination was found to be inconclusive – was carried out by Prof Hubert Daisley at the Boodoo Funerary in Cunupia.
The first autopsy was performed at the Center for Forensic Sciences in St James, but no cause of death could be determined due to the advanced state of decomposition of the body. Blood and tissue samples were collected for further examination and the body was released to the funeral home.
Daisley was reluctant to speak when contacted by Newsday for a comment.
“Actually, I don’t talk about my findings to anyone except the immediate family,” he said before advising Newsday to speak to Bharatt’s relatives.
However, sources at the autopsy on Tuesday confirmed that Daisley’s report indicated that a blunt head trauma was what caused Bharatt’s death.
Social activist Inshan Ishmael posted a video recording on his Facebook page at 1:30 pm, in which he revealed the results of the second autopsy. It was Ishmael and restaurateur Jenny Sharma who, together with other concerned citizens, approached the Bharatt family offering to pay for a second private autopsy.
In the video, Ishmael said that Daisley’s autopsy showed that there was bleeding inside Bharatt’s skull. “Basically, she died of internal bleeding and when she was hit on the head, she fell back. And what happened is that her skull fractured and she died, ”said Ishmael, reiterating that he was not a medical specialist.
There has been uncertainty about whether the findings of a private autopsy may or may not form the basis of a criminal charge, but several legal sources have told Newsday that such findings can be used by investigators to build a case once the pathologist is registered with the Medical Advice. Sources said the Bharatt family should make the report available to the police.
When Newsday visited the funeral home on Tuesday, Bharatt’s father, Randolph, was nowhere to be seen. He was at the Center for Forensic Sciences in St James on Monday when the initial autopsy was done.
Contacted on Tuesday for a comment, a tired-looking Bharatt said that now is not a good time for the family and declined to comment on the results of the private autopsy.
“There is no news here, I’m sorry,” he said before ending the call.
Andrea Bharatt, who worked at the Arima Magistrates’ Court, was found dead on February 4, at the foot of a precipice in the Aripo Hills, after being kidnapped on January 28. She was last seen getting into a car that she thought was a taxi on King Street in Arima. The car was later found with fake “H” license plates.
Following his kidnapping and murder, several people, including a woman, were arrested. Two suspects died in police custody.
The first was Andrew Morris, who was arrested on January 31 and died on February 1. Police said he fell off a chair after refusing food and treatment at Arima General Hospital.
The second suspect, Joel Belcon, would have more than 70 charges against him and died on Monday afternoon at the Eric Williams Medical Science Complex Intensive Care Unit in Mt Hope, where he was taken after being injured while allegedly resisting arrest. .