Thirty-year-old Orlando Douglas of Garnett Street, Georgetown was on Tuesday afternoon arraigned before a Georgetown magistrate, charged with the murders of 61-year-old Pandit Deonarine Liliah and his 28-year-old son Omkar Liliah, allegedly committed between July 7 and 10 at the Liliahs’ home at Delph and Craig Streets, Campbellville, Georgetown during the furtherance of a robbery.
Douglas was not required to plead to the indictable charge.
Attorney representing Douglas, Melvin Duke, argued that his client had been randomly picked out of a crowd that had gathered at the scene of the crime on July 10. He charged that Douglas was not found with any tools or weapons, and contended that the accused is being tortured to make certain “confessions” regarding the matter.
The Police Prosecutor, however, told the court that the accused was found in possession of a mobile phone that belonged to one of the dead men.
Douglas has been remanded to prison until July 31, when the case is set for recall.
A tale of horror
It was previously reported that Douglas, who is known to the Police, was caught selling two mobile phones on Leopold Street, Georgetown on Friday evening. Upon checking the phones, it was discovered that the handsets belonged to the now dead pandit and his son. As such, the young man was arrested and interrogated, during which he reportedly told detectives that the plan to rob the Liliahs had been in the pipeline for quite some time.
He confessed that, on July 7, he and an accomplice had gone to the pandit’s premises, and after staking it out for some time, executed their plan.
The young man reportedly told detectives that he kept guard a short distance away, while his accomplice scaled the fence and entered the pandit’s home through a front door.
He told detectives that his accomplice realised that the younger Liliah was at home alone, and he and the now dead man reportedly had a scuffle, during which he stabbed the young man several times, and left him to die in a pool of blood.
The killer then ransacked the house in search of money and jewellery, and as he was packing the loot, the pandit reportedly returned home, only to find his son’s bloodied and lifeless body lying on the floor.
Before the pandit could raise an alarm, the killer confronted him and stabbed him to death.
With both men dead, the suspect claimed, his accomplice left the house with two bags containing personal belongings of the now dead Liliahs. They eventually met up on Sheriff Street, Georgetown with the intention of splitting the loot, but he instead was reportedly given two phones.
On the day of the discovery, the younger Liliah’s body was found lying face down on the floor in a pool of blood with a red jersey wrapped around his head. There were three stab wounds to his back, one each to the left and right side abdomen, and two to his chest.
The elder Liliah was found lying on his back in the living room. He was clad in a pair of white long pants and a multi-coloured jersey, and his face was covered with a multi-coloured jersey. He had sustained four stab wounds to his abdomen, four to his left side, one to the lower back, and one to the right hip.
There was no sign of forced entry into the home. However, CCTV footage collected from nearby buildings revealed that a male had scaled the fence and had entered the premises through a front door. After some time, he was seen leaving the house with two bulky bags and a bucket.
