Moruga man charged with court worker’s murder

BAIL has been denied for a 43-year-old man charged with the murder of his common-law wife who was chopped to death at the family's home in Moruga last month.

Shane Gomez, 43, of Poui Road in St Mary's Village, faced High Court master Delicia Bethelmy in the South Criminal Court A.

She remanded him into custody and adjourned the case to April 14.

The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions instructed the police on January 13 to charge Gomez with Stacy Gopaulsingh's murder after reviewing a file submitted by the Homicide Bureau of Investigations, Region Three.

WPC Valdez laid the charge.

Supt Persad, ASP Maharaj and Sgt Bridgemohan, all of the Homicide Bureau, led the investigation.

Gopaulsingh worked as a judicial support officer at the courthouse in Princes Town.

Before dawn on December 23, her body was found with multiple chop wounds in the family's home.

The police were initially told three gunmen entered the house demanding a laptop she used for work.

Gomez was also in the house. The police were told as he was about to intervene, a gunman stopped him.

The police were told Gomez grabbed their three-year-old daughter and fled by jumping through a window.

Gopaulsingh was reportedly three months pregnant at the time of her death.

The police arrested Gomez a few days ago.

Gopaulsingh's funeral took place on December 30 at the St Joseph RC Church in Moruga.

Her sister Chrissie Gopaulsingh, who delivered the eulogy, told mourners Gopaulsingh was doing her master's degree at the University of the Southern Caribbean (USC) and was set to graduate this year.

She added that Gopaulsingh had done two associate degrees, one in social work (2013) and the other in psychology (2014) at COSTAATT.

Gopaulsingh also had a brief career in the police service before resigning in 2017.

In 2018, she obtained her BA in criminal justice from COSTAATT, and in 2019, she became a judicial support officer, holding this post until her death.