Teen miner shot dead under mysterious circumstances

Police are investigating the death of 19-year-old Joel Amad, a miner of Anarika, Essequibo River, who died on Monday night from a gunshot wound to the right-side chest.

It is suspected that the bullet emanated from Amad’s firearm while he was hunting not far from the house of his girlfriend at 17 Miles Rockstone Village, however, police have not recovered the firearm.

News Room understands that the Toshao of the village, Flagan Carter, who is also the Pastor of Rockstone, was informed by Councillor, Floyd Sharple that Amad, a father of one, shot himself.

They two men went to the scene and the Toshao observed five suspected live shotgun cartridges. The Toshao took photographs of the scene and left the cartridges until the police arrived.

Police searched the home of Amad’s girlfriend but did not find the missing items.

News Room understands that at about 19:00 hrs, Amad told his girlfriend that he was going hunting and will be back for dinner. He then left in the direction of the backyard down a trail.

A short while later, the girlfriend heard a loud explosion and suspected it to be a gunshot that emanated from the direction that Amad went.

The woman then heard him screaming her name and she immediately grabbed a torchlight and rushed down the trail where she found Amad lying motionless in the bushes with blood on his chest and froth oozing from his mouth.

She found him about 150-200 feet away from her home. The village ambulance took the teenager to the Linden Hospital Complex, where he was pronounced dead on arrival.

His hands were swabbed for gunshot residue.