Autopsy shows 10-year-old girl strangled

One of the stories that has dominated the media in Trinidad and Tobago in recent days has been the murder of a little girl in Laventille, an inner city neighbourhood on the fringe of the capital Port of Spain.

Laventille is one of the poorer communities in the country and is infested with rival gangs constantly fighting for turf in a never-ending drug war. The little girl - Tecia Henry - appears to have become a victim in that war. And her murder has incensed people not only in the community but across the nation.

Tecia left her home at Essex Road, off Cook Street, Laventille last Saturday on an errand for a her mother and never returned home. On Wednesday her decomposing body was found in a shallow grave a short distance from where she lived.

Police have detained five men. On Thursday angry residents torched the home of one of the suspects. The minister of national security has appealed to people not to seek revenge. Martin Joseph said fire officials and police are investigating to determine if there is a connection between the fire and Tecia's murder.

Joseph told reporters Thursday, “The Government condemns this terrible act by persons who are bent on destroying the society and killing innocent children."

In the aftermath of the gruesome killing people are blaming the community, the crime-infested environment and the child's mother.

The grieving family considers the blame unfair: “We are single mothers who provide for our children in the best way we can. Nothing could prepare you for something like this, no mother deserves this,” said one community member.

Friends of the family told reporters women are often left to raise children on their own as fathers abdicate their responsibilities or die in the gang wars.

Government officials from the Ministry of Social Development have promised to visit Tecia’s family "to assess their counselling and other needs, including assistance with funeral expenses."

Minister of Social Development Amery Browne visited the family on Wednesday and said Government is considering the family's request to relocate to a new neighbourhood.

There are all kinds of rumours circulating about what happened and why. The strongest is that Tecia's mother was a small time drug pusher who was was in debt and the child's murder was a message that she should pay up.