A POLICE officer testified yesterday that authorities found the nude body of an elderly American woman buried on a beach on Cat Island in 2017 with a cord around her neck.
Assistant Superintendent Jamal Evans said that her alleged murderer, Rodrigo Rolle, ran from police when they arrived to arrest him at his home.
Rolle, 33, is accused of killing Janice Kissinger, 74, during a home invasion in Orange Creek, Cat Island, on September 29, 2017. Rolle allegedly stole a 2006 Ford Explorer and a $500 safe containing a $5,000 Rolex belonging to Frank and Gabbi Wolf.
ASP Evans of the homicide unit at the Criminal Investigations Department testified that on September 30, 2017, he and other officers travelled to Cat Island in response to a missing person report for Ms Kissinger.
Upon arriving, the officer went to a dirt road known as Anguilla and found the burnt-out husk of a Ford Explorer Jeep.
The following day, officers went to Shannon’s Cove, where they knocked on the victim’s door to no answer.
When police eventually gained entry to the residence, they found that the victim’s possessions had been thrown around. The victim’s bedroom and purse had also been ransacked.
The victim’s neighbours reportedly did not hear screams or sounds of a struggle during the alleged assault.
When officers arrived at the defendant’s residence, ASP Evans said he saw Rolle try to run to the back of his house.
By the time ASP Evans drove to the back of the residence, he saw that Rolle had been subdued. He also observed that the defendant had wounds to his head and the bottom of his feet as he ran barefoot.
After Rolle was booked at the Alice Town Police Station, he allegedly declined medical attention initially.
Later that day, the remains of the victim were found in the Bain Town area at the beach, buried under a shrub of bushes. Kissinger’s remains were found nude, wrapped in a blanket with a white cord around her neck.
On October 2, ASP Evans said officers arrested Marcello Hepburn, a man who testified last week about helping Rolle break into the safe out of fear. Before both suspects were taken to New Providence for further investigation, the defendant received treatment and medication for his injuries.
On October 4, Hepburn was released, and Rolle was formally charged with murder.
Geoffrey Farquharson, the defendant’s attorney, questioned why a homicide officer was sent to Cat Island to respond to a missing person report.
In response, the officer said that he investigates more than just homicides and that officers from other specialities were also sent.
Mr Farquharson suggested that officers covered up the crime and blamed an innocent man. He said the reason ASP Evans never called Kissinger’s phone during his initial investigation was because he knew she was already dead.
The officer denied his claim, calling it “foolishness”.
ASP Evans agreed with the lawyer that a safe stolen from Kissinger’s residence was found near Hepburn’s house.
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