Doctor’s murder: Prime suspect confesses to bludgeoning doctor to death

…nabbed while attempting to flee to Suriname

Police made a breakthrough in the murder of Dr Colin Roach after the prime suspect was arrested while attempting to flee to Suriname and confessed to the crime.

Ranks of the Major Crimes Unit swooped down on 25-year-old Hilton Oliver Junior Franklin at around 05:00h on Friday morning in Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne).
It was reported that the suspect is a friend of the medical practitioner who was found in a pool of blood on Tuesday night in his Duke Street, Kingston, Georgetown office.
Following his arrest, the 25-year-old suspect has since confessed to inflicting the fatal wound on the doctor but has also implicated one of the doctor’s employees, whom he claimed assisted him.

Investigators had visited the home of the suspect but he and his family were not there. This was after the doctor’s stolen vehicle was discovered at Schoonord, West Bank Demerara (WBD), on Thursday morning.
The vehicle was found abandoned on the Schoonord Public Road with the car’s license plate PXX 4000 and keys missing.
A source close to the investigation also indicated that the entire vehicle appeared to be wiped down with an unknown solution to remove any trace of evidence.
It was reported that detectives still dusted the vehicle in a bid to discover fingerprints.
Meanwhile, Crime Chief Wendell Blanhum when contacted on Friday, confirmed that the suspect has admitted to inflicting the fatal wound on the deceased but did not divulge any further details.
Guyana Times understands that the man told investigators that he was having drinks with the doctor and another friend, when Roach became intoxicated and pushed him on a cot. He claimed that in retaliation, he hit the doctor with a metal object.
A post-mortem examination was conducted on Friday on the 49-year-old medical practitioner’s body and revealed that he died from multiple blunt traumas to the head.
Police in a report said when Dr Roach’s clinic closed at about 15:00h on Tuesday, one of two males who worked with him left the building and the other retired to his living quarters in the top flat, leaving the doctor in his office in the middle flat.
Police said at 20:00h a male was seen exiting the building. He returned about seven minutes later and re-entered the clinic.
Then around 22:18h, the vehicle belonging to the doctor headed north out of Duke Street.
It was further observed that the lights in the doctor’s office were still on, which prompted one of the employees to call the doctor on his cellular phone, but he received no answer.
The medical doctor was later found lying motionlessly on his back in a pool of blood in the examination area.
A wound was seen on the left side of the doctor’s forehead.
The two men who were with the doctor are also in custody assisting with investigations. (G9)