Relatives struggling to cope

Relatives of murdered mother of two Arisa David, 25, say they are trying their best to support each other and be strong in the face of this tragedy. David was found dead in her bedroom of the family’s Chase Village home on Tuesday morning. She is the first woman murdered this year.

A close male relative who reportedly had a history of physically abusing David over the past seven years, was arrested shortly after her body was discovered by her mother and remains in police custody.

The victim’s older sister Anisa said the family remains concerned about David’s daughters aged three and eight who witnessed her mother being strangled. She said the funeral has been tentatively set for tomorrow but they are still awaiting the arrival of relatives from abroad. A post mortem at the Forensic Science Centre in St James revealed that David was manually strangled.

Relatives lamented that they had warned David about the abusive relationship she was in and that the suspect had even been banned him from coming to her home, but apparently she would sneak him in after everyone else had retired to bed.