Family of boat builder who reportedly drowned wants thorough probe 

The family of a boat builder who reportedly drowned is urging the police to conduct a thorough investigation into the incident.

Police Headquarters, in a statement, revealed that Tamesh Takurdin, a 22-year-old from Number 65 Village, Corentyne, Berbice, was out on a trip with three other fishermen when their boat capsized around 16:10 hrs on Wednesday, August 6, near the coast of Corentyne.

It was reported that Takurdin fell out of the boat and was unable to be located in the water.

One of his coworkers, Jenefa Kewley, told reporters that she witnessed Tamesh Chunilall leave the Number 65 Koker to take a boat for a test run.

Jenefa recounted that a few minutes later, Chunilall returned by himself and told the others that his boat had “turned over and Tamesh had drowned.”

Jenefa shared that upon hearing the shocking news, she quickly notified Takurdin’s father, and together with a group of others, they set out to search for him.

“While searching, the bai [Chunilall] ah tell abbay how the boat turnover. The boat knock at the corner and turned over with them,” she related.

She mentioned that they laid out a net in the location where the incident reportedly occurred. Within minutes, a member of the search team jumped into the water, and they located Takurdin’s body at the Number 65 Channel around 17:45 hrs.

The police also joined the search.

The police report noted that there was froth coming from Takurdin’s nose and mouth. They checked his body for signs of violence, but none were found.

Takurdin was transported to Skeldon Public Hospital, where he was officially declared dead.

On  August 7, a postmortem revealed that he died from asphyxia and drowning.

Jenefa dismissed the rumors suggesting that Takurdin had been drinking before the trip, clarifying that it was Chunilall who was seen drinking early in the morning. She also noted that there were only two people on the boat.

“What them saying that the bai drink and work, the bai nah drink. Because at 3 o’clock, me and he was making jokes. That man don’t drink and work,” she said.

Omarpersaud Takurdin, the victim’s father, stated, “Me gah get justice for my son.”

Radica Ramanandan, the man’s grandmother, voiced her wish for a thorough investigation into the incident to ensure that justice is served.

“… I would like the Commander of Region Six and the police to investigate this matter very seriously,” she said.