Missing cousins stabbed before being thrown into Sea Lots river

Senior Reporter

anna-lisa.paul@guardian.co.tt

Shortly before he left home last Friday to attend a party with his cousin Rikeil Cumberbatch, Rykeel Dookna’s family pleaded with him to be wary of the company he had been keeping in recent weeks.

Promising a close male relative he planned to change in the coming days, Dookna assured his family that he remained focused on growing his business and improving his life.

The 18-year-old was last seen alive as he walked out of his parents’ house around 11 pm on September 13.

Cumberbatch’s family meanwhile, said it was not unusual for the 21-year-old to attend parties and as such, were not alarmed when the boys headed out.

What was unusual and worrying was the fact that both boys failed to answer their cellphones in the wee hours the next day.

Dookna and Cumberbatch were reported to have been at Samaroo Village, Arima, on September 14, as they allegedly dropped off a friend.

Their rental car was found idling in some bushes along the Blanchisseuse Road, Arima, on that same day, with no sign of either man.

Their bodies were discovered floating in the mangrove at Pioneer Drive, Sea Lots, around 4 pm on September 15.

Guardian Media was told that post-mortem results revealed both men had been stabbed to death and their bodies thrown into the water, which hastened decomposition.

Dookna, a graduate of El Dorado West Secondary School, was described as his father’s “spoil child.”

The last of three children, he was said to have been highly skilled with his hands.

A close female relative recalled, “He coulda do anything for an 18-year-old. You give him a power saw to cut down a coconut tree, he could do that. You tell him the car not starting, he could do that. You tell him fix the deck in the car, he could do that. You tell him build a cupboard for you, he could do that.”

Dookna’s family were proud of his business acumen as he had already sold two cars before he turned 18, and had established Ninko’s Car Wash, Arima.

They said while Dookna had been his father’s eyeball, his three nephews were his and they in turn, loved him unconditionally.

The speculated that the young man had gotten “caught up.”

One woman said, “You see when you trust people and you trust them to a certain extent … humans not trustable. Not everybody you could trust.”

Dookna’s family said Cumberbatch was, “Very loving.”

A relative said, “Anything I wanted and Rikeil have it, is mine.”

Another woman said Cumberbatch, who worked in construction was like any other young man.

“He liked partying, he liked to dress up,” she said.

Regarding the crime situation, everyone agreed, “It is ridiculous. The way the country is right now, anybody could get it.”

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