Wilkie Arthur

Eagle Legal News Media

Turks and Caicos, September 13, 2024 – In case one, allegations of a brother, of Dominican descent, raping his own sister and then hanging himself. In case two, allegations of another and known Dominican man after being deported or repatriated returns to the Turks and Caicos as a stow away and allegedly drowns.

Eagle Legal Court Correspondent was in the Coroner’s Court for the past two weeks when various different coronial matters were called.

The learned Coroner delivered her final decision on the two coronial matters mentioned above.

We will report on case number #1, “Allegations of brother raping sister, then killing himself.”

GABRIEL ESMIL DURAN, lived in Dock Yard, Kew Town, Providenciales. He was born in 1976 and allegedly hung himself in November 2021.  His sister, whose initials are A V D, gave police a statement of her brother raping her about 12 hours before being found hanging with a rope around his neck.

The Hon Coroner relied on that statement to help aid her in her decision.

The sister said, her brother was drinking earlier that day, and after the sexual assault she ran out of the house and hid herself in the bushes until the morning.  It was said that she told someone about the sexual assault.  She said around 9pm she checked the door, it was locked, but in the morning the door was unlocked. The Coroner said there was no evidence of anyone entering the property, but one of her concerns was how the door got unlocked.

There was also information or evidence about his partner catching Covid-19 in the Dominican Republic, and that possibly weighed heavily on him.

Due to insufficient evidence surrounding the “police provisional suicide death” of Gabriel Esmil Duran, the learned Coroner did not reach the conclusion that this was a suicide death and her decision in the coronial matter was an “OPEN CONCLUSION”, which means if any further evidence was to ever come forward in this particular case, the coroner could reopen it.

Turks and Caicos, September 13, 2024 – Born in the Turks and Caicos, Huraldo De La Cruz Gonzalez was shot to death on Sunday September 8, becoming the 29^th person to be murdered in the Turks and Caicos this year.

Said to be originally from South Caicos, the shots were reported to the Royal TCI Police around 2pm on Sunday as being heard on Church Street in Blue Hills.  Upon arrival, the young man was found, lifeless, informed the police report.

The country’s 28^th murder was Shane Williams.

Wilkie Arthur and Deandrea Hamilton

Turks and Caicos, September 13, 2024 – TCI Police are not saying how the fire was set, but they do confirm a fire was intentionally set and witnesses speaking to Eagle Legal News Media report that it was thrown into a Wheeland house where it landed in the living room and exploded.

“…it is alleged criminals sent fire bomb (s) through a home, but thankfully no one was in the living room area where it landed and an explosion was heard loudly, no one was hurt or injured,” reported Wilkie Arthur of Eagle Legal on the night of the horrifying incident.

The Police report explains: Shortly after 8 p.m. yesterday (September 9), officers of the Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force responded to a fire report at a dwelling in Wheeland, Blue Hills, Providenciales. Upon arrival at the scene, police officers and firefighters saw a structure in flames.

All efforts to contain the fire were successful. Fortunately, there were no injuries. Based on initial reports, the fire appears to have been deliberately set.

The RTCIPF wishes to remind the public that under the Malicious Injuries to Property Ordinance Chapter 3.11, Section 4, “Setting fire to a dwelling-house with any person being therein Whosoever shall unlawfully and maliciously set fire to any dwelling house, any person being therein, commits an offence, and being convicted thereof shall be liable to imprisonment for life.”

Fire Trucks and Police were summoned to the scene on Monday night.  Images of the response are shared by Eagle Legal.

Meanwhile, the RT&CIPF is asking anyone with information that may help in this investigation to contact the closest police station, 911, the Serious Crime Unit at 231-1842, or Crime Stoppers at 1-800- 8477 to provide any information anonymously.