Following a tense wait that saw a riot outside the GPHC, the keenly anticipated forensic autopsy of 11-year-old Adriana Younge revealed yesterday that she died from drowning and this triggered a new wave of protests, looting and the setting of fires last night.
The autopsy, which took approximately five hours starting at 12:30 pm, was completed last evening in the morgue of the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation by three international pathologists, Dr Glenn A. Rudner from Mount Sinai Hospital in New York, Dr Shubhakar Karra Paul, the government-appointed international pathologist from Barbados, and Dr Gary L. Collins, Chief Medical Examiner for the State of Delaware, who Adriana’s family chose to represent their interests.
The result was disclosed to the media last evening by Subrian Younge, father of Adriana and came after days of rampant speculation that she might have died due to foul play.
President Irfaan Ali, last evening at a press conference at State House expanded on the findings and appealed to those engaged in the unrest to desist.
He confirmed that the autopsy findings were shared with him. He said that “the objectives were to identify signs of trauma, or injuries around the body, to detect signs of sexual violence, collect appropriate forensic samples, document the post mortem examination through photographs and videography, determine the cause of death. Upon completing the procedure the forensic pathologists ruled out signs of physical and sexual trauma on Ms Younge’s body, after careful deliberation, the team concluded that Ms. Younge died as a result of drowning, Ms. Younge’s relatives were briefed following the examination and informed of the medical cause of death. Due to the state of decomposition of Ms. Younge’s body, the pathologists were unable to provide an exact time of death. The relatives were also informed that the pathologists ruled out theories of forceful drowning, or any other means of killing, followed by the disposal of the body in water.”
Upon arrival at Dr Balwant Singh Hospital at 7:15 am yesterday, Stabroek News noticed Adriana’s family along the East Street corridor in front of the hospital. Her body was taken from the Ezekiel Funeral Home, Vreed en Hoop, at 6 am to be transported to the Balwant Singh Hospital for scanning. The scan, which lasted for more than an hour, was intended to reveal whether Adriana experienced any internal injuries, abnormalities or any damage to her skeleton.
At 7:45 am, Adriana’s family’s attorney Darren Wade and Dr. Collins arrived at Balwant Singh and entered the premises. Once this process was completed, Adriana’s body was placed once again back into the Ezekiel Funeral home vehicle and transported to the morgue at GPHC. While the vehicle drove the short distance, the pathologists left the Balwant Singh Hospital and entered their bus, refusing to give any comments while Adriana’s mother, her aunt Amika Lewis and her other aunt Alisha Lewis, walked slowly over to the GPHC New Market Street OutPatient entrance only to be told they needed to walk over to the Middle Street entrance. After they walked to the Middle Street entrance, the security guard at that entrance verified their identities and let them through. However, a few minutes later, chaos ensued when persons tried trying to enter the hospital gate and the security refused them entry. It is unclear whether everybody there was in relation to Adriana or whether some of them genuinely wanted to seek medical attention. Nonetheless, the security and a few others were forcing the gate closed while the crowd began to push the gate open. Persons from the media identified themselves and demanded to be let in, only to be told by the security guard “Only state media allowed in”. This incensed the crowd further as they continued to push the gate open and a few persons slipped through. Realising this was a futile exercise, some members of the media decided to walk around to the New Market entrance and gained access through there. It was during this time that the Chief Executive Officer of GPHC Robbie Rambarran was called by one of the journalists present and he came to the gate. He stated he never gave an instruction that only state media must be let in.
Following this the family was asked to attend a meeting with the pathologists in the GPHC Communication Centre. Relatives of the family had entered the compound at this time and a small group had gathered infront of the morgue to await updates. A few moments later, SN understands there was a meeting with the pathologists, then a briefing of the police and finally a meeting with the parents and the pathologists. After which time, the family’s chosen representative Endocrinologist Dr. Caleb Mc Cloggan, addressed the members of the media stating that the autopsy will be “meticulous” and that “a normal autopsy might take like half an hour, the ones that we do here in Guyana but this is a forensic one so it might take up to 4 hours”.
Debris
However, this news was not communicated to the protestors at the Middle Street gate of the GPHC and persons there started blocking the road, bringing debris onto the road and forming into an angry group. In addition to blocking the road, persons protesting played drums loudly. It was at this point that some family members and relatives came to update the crowd of the development and ask them to keep the noise to a minimum so as not to disturb the pathologists.
For the next two hours, the crowd remained quiet until a security guard got into an altercation with a middle-aged woman through the gate. He quickly retreated into the hospital while the protestors threw glass bottles and bricks over the fence. The police quickly had him removed and insisted the GPHC replace him with another guard to keep the peace. By this time, things returned to a somewhat peaceful state with persons sharing with SN how anxious they were for the results. One person even said “Everytime the hearse move, my heart getting limpy limpy”. The drumming continued in the streets however things escalated when the drummers came closer to the Middle Street gate amplifying the noise. At this point, someone claiming to be an “obeah woman” started throwing alcohol on persons in the crowd, while moving to the rhythm of the beat and then throwing glass bottles over the fence. The police did not retaliate nor did they make any efforts to stop this from occurring however, a woman was seen asking a police officer “wuh yall could do? We deh hay till the results come out!”.
Subrian Younge then came to the gate in an attempt to quiet down the noise, asking the crowd to go across the road so as to lessen the noise he said “come nah man, if the man get disturbed they could cancel this autopsy, we not here for that, man please”. Even after pleading with the crowd, they got louder with some persons saying “if they don’t do it, we gunna come in and do it”. Subrian, looking frustrated, retreated to the morgue area holding his face. Around this time, persons continued beating the drums and chanting by the Middle Street entrance. Very shortly after, the Tactical Services Unit was deployed and made efforts to disperse the crowd. It is unclear whether force was used initially or whether efforts were made to peacefully ask the protestors to leave.
Nonetheless, SN observed men in the street who had dispersed throwing glass bottles and bricks at the TSU van. It was at this point that the TSU ranks outfitted themselves with their shields and began to fire rubber pellets into the direction of the launched missiles. The TSU ranks opened fire in both easterly and westerly directions along Middle Street for over an hour as many of the protestors continued to hurl missiles in their direction. One unnamed young lady was shot in her left leg however, she was denied entry into the gate on Middle Street, and was told she needed to walk around to the New Market Street entrance. Her boyfriend then lifted her over the fence and she limped to get medical attention. The standoff continued between TSU ranks and the protestors, for another two hours. At one point, one of the TSU ranks was hit by a projectile and his shield was taken away by a protestor. For fifteen minutes, the protestor advanced slowly and dodged the shots aimed by the TSU ranks, however he was eventually shot in his leg and limped as he retreated.
The shooting continued into Thomas Street as the TSU ranks advanced and the protestors retreated. Having more hiding places in Thomas Street, more cars and guard huts, the protestors were able to hurl more projectiles and hide thereafter. For about 45 minutes, there was a standoff between the TSU and the protestors on Thomas Street as well as on East Street. Persons in the GPHC compound were all glued to the fence watching on in loud protest against the TSU ranks.
The confrontation ended up on New Market street when over 100 protestors situated themselves on the fence of GPHC along that street and were jumping in and out of the compound. All the persons who spoke with SN at this time indicated they were waiting on the results of the autopsy before they left. It was at this point that Police Commander Simon McBean addressed the crowd asking them to please ‘calm down’ as the pathologists were ‘concerned for their safety’ as they had never experienced a crowd like that one before. The crowd was unmoved. They returned to chanting for justice and sitting on the wall of GPHC. However, this was very short-lived as a busload of TSU ranks appeared in New Market Street and advanced in that direction. The crowd once again dispersed however, not without putting up a fight.
Persons were seen scattering in all directions, with a few shots being sent in the direction of the hospital. A few persons were shot at this time including one woman in her eye, a man who according to him, was ‘casually standing along the fence’ said he was shot six times around his body, a man riding by suffered a graze to his face and another girl had multiple shots to her leg. Things became more heated as projectiles were hurled from within the compound of GPHC and members of the TSU came into the compound and lined the walls.
Shortly after this, SN observed the same vehicle which brought the pathologists to the GPHC from Dr Balwant Singh Hospital surrounded by TSU ranks and escorting the pathologists out of the compound. After this all of the TSU ranks left the compound. The crowd then turned, however, this time closer to the morgue as they received word that the autopsy had been completed and the family was coming out of the morgue. Adriana’s body was seen being placed in the Ezekiel funeral home van while her mother screamed and persons flocked the vehicle screaming loudly.
After her body was placed into the vehicle, Subrian Younge addressed the crowd saying “They seh she drown and duh is no results for me! For me duh is no results, once they seh she drown, no results”. He then entered a vehicle and left the premises. The remaining crowd was visibly and audibly enraged by this update.
Upon leaving the compound, many persons were overheard planning to continue protests throughout the night, which was exemplified by the protests which continued across the country in Buxton and other areas along the East Coast of Demerara, many streets in Georgetown, on the East Bank of Demerara in Agricola, and in the East Bank of Essequibo even up to press time.
Adriana went missing on Wednesday, April 23, 2025, while on a family outing with her grandmother and other relatives at the Double Day International Hotel poolside in Tuschen, East Bank Essequibo. She was subsequently found in the hotel pool on Thursday, April 24, 2025, at around 10:44 am. The girl’s grandmother, aunt, and Adriana’s two siblings — a boy, six years old, and a girl, eight years old — went to the hotel on Wednesday to swim. When they arrived at the hotel, the grandmother gave Adriana money to buy a wristband to gain access to the pool. She added that all of the siblings were swimming, and the little boy went to his grandmother and told her he was hungry. She took out food for the three siblings and told the boy to call his sister, to which he replied that he couldn’t find her. That was when the grandmother realised she was missing.
When Adriana’s lifeless body was discovered, angry villagers led a protest. The hotel was torched as was the residence of the owner, Bhojnarine Bhola in Vergenoegen.
On Friday April 25th, protests continued over the death of Adriana Younge in front of the Leonora Police Station which ended abruptly when the TSU were deployed to disperse the crowd. The crowd had been there for over 12 hours. Various parts of the country have been convulsed by protests erupting as far as at Belladrum, West Berbice. Peaceful protests were also held in Region 9 and in front of the Top Cop’s office Eve Leary.
Adriana had written the Grade Six examination this year and was awaiting results.
