Killer questions granny throughout hour-long ordeal – sifts through papers, seen entering and leaving her bedroom several times

By Michael Jordan

Dead: Carmen Ganesh

Kaieteur News has obtained the graphic surveillance recording of a man calmly clubbing, throttling and then kicking and stomping 77-year-old Carmen Ganesh—and repeatedly searching her Montrose, East Coast Demerara house and talking to his dying victim through the entire ordeal which lasted almost one hour.
The recording was obtained yesterday, even as police finally released a photograph of the killer, obtained from the same surveillance footage.
Kaieteur News last night posted an edited version of the footage online, in the hope that individuals can identify the perpetrator and assist in his capture.
The surveillance recording shows a man of African ancestry in Mrs. Ganesh’s home. He is wearing a pair of three-quarter camouflage pants and purple jersey, and what appears to be a pair of brown shoes.
Apart from his image, the killer is likely to have his fingerprints and traces of his DNA at the scene.
Although he took some of the victim’s jewellery and pension, investigators who have viewed the entire recording believe that robbery may not have been the primary motive for the attack.
The sources point to the fact that the killer, who had sneaked into the house Saturday morning while Mrs. Ganesh was performing her religious rites outside, had ample time to make off with his victim’s valuables.
Instead, he remained inside for about an hour, and is seen in the footage searching the house and even sifting through papers on a table.
Acting on the theory that someone may have had a grudge against Mrs. Ganesh, police have detained a Montrose businessman who lost out in court to Mrs. Ganesh in a bitter property dispute a few years ago. The man was still in custody yesterday.
Ganesh is the caretaker of the house in which she was slain, but is said to have another property in Montrose. It was this property that was at the centre of a court dispute involving the man who police have detained.
The actions of the killer on the surveillance camera recording, viewed by Kaieteur News, seem to support the theory being pursued by detectives, that the suspect may have been searching for something specific.

Caption for video above: An edited version of the tape showing the ordeal suffered by Carmen Ganesh

The recording shows the killer, who is eerily calm and unhurried, striking Mrs. Ganesh in the head when she attempts to enter a bottom-flat room at around 06:19 hrs. As she falls to the floor, he repeatedly kicks and stomps Mrs. Ganesh, and even clubs her with a spanner every time her legs move.
He is also seen speaking to and gesticulating at his victim, who is lying on the floor, then repeatedly entering a bedroom, only to return to Mrs. Ganesh and again speaking to and gesticulating at her. He also goes to a table and sifts through documents and even opens some envelopes. The killer is also seen going to two upstairs rooms, which appear to be locked, but makes no effort to force them open.
His entire search appears to be focused on the bottom-flat in which the elderly woman lived.
Seemingly unaware of the surveillance cameras, he also goes into her fridge, and wipes his sweating face with a towel.
Shortly after 07.14 hrs, the killer exits the house. He is seen wiping off his shoes, before scaling the woman’s front fence and heading across the Montrose Public Road to join a bus, which reportedly heads towards Georgetown.
Ganesh’s son and daughter-in law found her body when they went to check on her after she failed to respond to neighbours’ calls. A post mortem conducted yesterday revealed that the victim died from head injuries. Kaieteur News was told that Ganesh was living at the Lot 121 Montrose Public Road property for several years, taking care of it for some relatives who live overseas.
She was last seen by neighbours picking flowers early Saturday morning. Her son, who lived close-by, had also called out to her while he was leaving for work.
She is among 20 women who have been murdered for the year.
Police yesterday appealed to anyone with information on Mrs. Ganesh’s killer to reach them on telephone numbers 225-6411, 225-8196, 225-2227, 229-2557, 229-2702, 911 or the nearest police station. All information will be treated with strict confidence.