ACHING FOR CLOSURE

The mother of a woman who was killed by her lover in 2017 and buried inside their Westmoreland home says she is disappointed that the confessed killer has shed no light on the whereabouts of her beloved granddaughter, who went missing around the same time.

“Up until now I don't know what [has happened to] the baby and everything is finalised, according to the court, and I am not taking it very well. It is taking a toll on me,” Carlene Bailey told The Gleaner.

The 24-year-old woman, Nadian Dyer, and four-year-old daughter Orlandie Malcolm had been living with the convicted killer Ayele Russell when they went missing in April 2017.

Dyer's decomposing body was found by police buried in a structure inside the house on June 7. However, the toddler has not been seen since.

According to the facts in the case, the couple was heard quarrelling on April 17 and a day after the incident, a strong disinfectant odour was noticed emanating from their bedroom.

Russell was then seen on April 23 leaving the premises with a knapsack and later informed a relative that he was in New York.

Russell, who was deported a year ago after serving a sentence for armed robbery, pleaded guilty to Dyer's murder in the Westmoreland Circuit Court and was sentenced to 24 years to life.

But Bailey, who is convinced that Russell knows what happened to the child, said she is not pleased with the sentence.

“Dem fi heng him up. A 30 year him shoulda get,” she told The Gleaner.

The Kingston resident claimed that Russell went to great lengths to deceive her following her daughter and grandchild's disappearance.

She said that Russell had started communicating with her on the phone as if he was Dyer, and at the time, told her they could only speak by WhatsApp as the phone speaker was not working.

Bailey said that some time later, she became concerned about not hearing the baby as she used to speak to her regularly.

“Mi get mad one a the time,” she said, adding that she was being sent recording of a child with a voice similar to her grandchild's.

“Mi nah go live without getting closure for Orlandie. A just that mi did a live fa when dem ketch him, [to know] if him kill the baby or give her away,” she said, calling for the police to keep probing the matter.

Before the sentence was handed down, Russell apologised to Dyer's family, claiming he still loved her and that he killed her in a moment of passion.

But Bailey rejected his apology.

“I damn him to hell with that,” she said.

In the meanwhile, Director of Public Prosecutions Paula Llewellyn said there was no evidence on the file implicating Russell in the possible disappearance of the child.

There was only a statement from a person claiming that Dyer had told her that she gave the baby to a relative.

But Bailey said based on all that she had heard, she believes that the child is dead.

Llewellyn said she was informed by the police that no investigation was carried out as the child was never reported missing.

tanesha.mundle@gleanerjm.com