BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – MELVINA KELLY, also known as Mary, of Saddlers Village was this morning (Jul. 13) charged for the murder of her eight-year-old granddaughter, Belisha Edwards.
According to a police press release, at about 11:30 a.m. today, the 52-year-old woman was formally arrested and charged for the murder of her granddaughter who was found motionless at Kelly’s Saddlers Village home on Sunday, July 11, 2010 with a wound to her neck.
The release also informed that at about 7:45 this morning, resident pathologist Dr. Adrian Nunez performed an autopsy on Edwards’ body and concluded that “her death was due to complications resulting from a penetrated wound produced by a sharp instrument to the right side of the neck”.
The deceased was the daughter of Kelly’s son, Leroy Elliott, and she was residing with her mother, Usha Edwards, in Conaree Village. Confirmed reports state that she had left her mother’s home to spend the summer vacation with her grandmother; however, on Sunday morning (Jul. 11) while asleep, Kelly allegedly stabbed her to death.
On arrival at the scene, SKNVibes saw large pockets of people converged in the vicinity of the public bath, a short distance from the where the grandmother lives.
Speaking to this media house, police officials on the scene informed that a report was made sometime after 3:30 a.m. of a stabbing incident in Saddlers. On arrival, the body of the eight-year-old was found lying on her grandmother’s bed with a stab wound to the right side of her neck and her left hand rested across her chest.
Police further informed that she was pronounced dead by the district medical officer shortly before 8:00 a.m. and the body was subsequently removed from the scene by Jenkins Funeral Home.
SKNVibes was however told by sources close to the family that at about 2:30 Sunday morning, Kelly’s teenage son arrived home and saw Belisha and her grandmother sleeping on a bed in one of the bedrooms.
He went to his room and shortly after, while in bed, he heard a loud pounding on the door. On opening the door, he was confronted by his mother, who “jabbed him with a knife on his hip and told him to go back to sleep”.
“He went back to bed, but within seconds he heard Belisha screaming and he ran out the house and went to his sister who lives nearby. When he got there, he told his sister what happened. He and his sister then went to their mother’s home and found that the doors were locked. A report was then made to the police,” one of the sources said.
This media house also learned that sometime in the past, Belisha’s grandmother had reportedly stabbed her husband.
Belisha’s death brings to 17 the total number of homicides committed in the twin-island Federation for 2010; 13 on St. Kitts and four on Nevis.
