Plaque, prayers for slain schoolgirl at Las Lomas on Saturday

SATURDAY marks 40 days since the shooting death of 15-year-old Isabella Teelucksingh of Las Lomas No 1.

Relatives, the councillor for the area, Ryan Rampersad, and other community members will gather at the murder scene to mark the occasion by witnessing a plaque being unveiled in her honour.

The unveiling takes place at LP 11 Savary Road, and a statement from Isabella's father, Rohan Teelucksingh, said it will serve as a memorial to her life and legacy.

He said he was deeply sorrowed and displeased over the murder, which he dubbed a bold act of gun violence in the neighbourhood.

The event will also serve as a show of solidarity against gun violence and criminality in the country.

Isabella's favourite colour was black, and those attending are encouraged to wear black.

Later, at around 3 pm, a memorial service is set to take place at the family's nearby home at Kacy Avenue.

Isabella was a student of the Carapichaima East Secondary School.

On January 14 at around 7.35 pm, she was among a group of villagers standing on Savary Road where a gunman started shooting, hitting her and a 20-year-old female relative.

Both were taken to hospital. Isabella died the next morning while being treated at the Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex in Mt Hope.

The injured relative had surgery and is recuperating at home.

On the advice of the Office of the Director of Prosecutions, Homicide Bureau of Investigations Region III police charged a fellow villager, Sunil Ramjattan, 46, with Isabella's murder, wounding with intent and having a gun and ammunition.

Ramjattan, of Savary Road, first appeared on January 22 before a master in the High Court. He was denied bail and remanded into police custody to reappear in court in April.

Speaking on behalf of the family, Isabella's uncle, Dennis Teelucksingh, an attorney, called on the public to attend and show their support.

"The plaque is something that people can always remember her by, and symbolises within the community that crime has no benefits.

"This incident has rocked the entire community, including the family of the accused," he told Newsday on Friday.

"It is really sad that something like this happened to an innocent child.

"I hope the unveiling sensitises the community on crime. I cannot come to terms with processing what happened."

Another relative, who asked to remain anonymous, said the family was still deeply traumatised and in mourning.

The relative said criminality is a nationwide problem, citing other young murder victims such as Sean Luke, Andrea Bharrat, Ashanti Riley and Amy Annamunthodo.

The relative added that dealing with crime would require a collective effort.

"The brazen acts of violence are all over the country. It did not affect just us in central. We all need to play our part. Criminality is causing a lot of changes in people's lives, mentally and physically. We do not even know if we will heal from this.

"We want to live for Isabella. We want to live through her legacy. She was only 15 and barely started to live. We want to take footprints from the life she lived. She was a peacemaker and never liked quarrels.

"As a people, we must be mindful about gun violence and criminality."

Calls to the councillor for comments went unanswered.