BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – RESULTS of autopsies conducted on the two men who were reported missing and eventually found dead have shown that they both died of similar injuries and their deaths are now being treated as homicides.
The men are 54-year-old Elroy Malone of Willett’s Project and 53-year-old Basil Alfred Phipps of Saddlers.
A police press release issued last evening (Jan. 20) indicates that the autopsies were performed by Forensic Pathologist Dr. Valery Alexandrov on Monday (Jan. 19) and in the case of Malone, death was due to “multiple homicidal chop wounds to the head”, while Phipps died as a result of multiple homicidal chop wounds to the head and upper body.
Malone, according to reports which had reached SKNVibes, went missing on January 3 and a report was lodged with the authorities seven days later. After search parties were organised, Malone’s partly-decomposed remains were discovered on January 13 in an area in Willett’s Village known as Amsterdam Ghaut.
Phipps’ remains, which were also partly-decomposed, were discovered in Wharton’s Hill (White Gate area) on January 19.
It was reported that he went missing on January 15 and it was communicated with the authorities on January 17. As in the case of Malone, search parties were assembled which sought after the missing man and he was eventually found amongst overgrown grass with an obvious wound to the right side of his head.
While it was reported by this publication that Phipps was the second murder to have occurred for the year, this recently-disseminated information indicates that the murder toll now stands at three.
The first victim is 31-year-old Devon ‘Kobe’ Griffin, a passenger bus driver, who was shot and killed near his Rawlins Village Nevis home on the evening of January 9. Malone’s and Phipps’ are the second and third respectively.
Investigations into these incidents are still active and individuals who may have information that could assist the authorities in bringing the perpetrators to justice are asked to make contact with the Violent Crimes Unit by calling 662-9336 or 465-1886/1887, the nearest police station or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-8477(TIPS).
