Guyana Police Force finally breaks silence on Adriana Younge’s post-mortem

Last Updated on Thursday, 8 May 2025, 17:02 by Writer

Nine days after the post-mortem examination of the body of 11-year-old Adriana Younge, the Guyana Police Force (GPF) late Wednesday night broke its silence about the findings by the three foreign forensic pathologists.

“Unfortunately, as a result of a barrage of misinformation being peddled in the social media (arena), intending to confuse and cause public mischief, the Guyana Police Force feels compelled to share with the public some of the findings of the preliminary forensic examination report,” the Force said.

Normally, that law enforcement agency provides the findings of post-mortem examinations to the public through the media.

However, in the case of Younge, it was her father, Subrian Younge, the family’s then legal representative, Darren Wade and the President of Guyana, Dr Irfaan Ali, who announced separately to the media that the girl died by drowning.

The girl’s body was found in a pool at Double Day Hotel at Tuschen, East Bank Essequibo on April 24, one day after she was reported missing.

Hours after the family’s new legal representative, Attorney-at-Law Dr Dexter Todd emerged from a meeting with Police Commissioner Clifton Hicken and expressed concern about the premature release of the cause of Younge’s death without the results of toxicology tests, the Police Force rejected that contention.

The Police Force said it neither prematurely nor at all released the preliminary findings of the cause of death to the public.

The law enforcement agency said that was made clear from the inception.

“It was also made pellucid that a toxicology analysis will be conducted overseas and only when this process is concluded, a final report will be issued,” the Force added.

Several of the findings that the GPF released are:

1. There was no evidence of sexual assault (her external genitalia were examined and found unremarkable with her hymen intact)
2. Her soft tissues as well as skeletal structure were free of traumatic injury
3. There was a residual cone of foam identified within her nostrils and oral cavity, which is often observed in cases of drowning (this finding dispels any contention that there was cotton wool in her nose)
4. The skin changes observed were from prolonged immersion with ‘washerwoman’ changes noted on bilateral hands and soles (washerwoman changes are also consistent in cases of drowning)
5. The skin was found to be intact and free from antemortem injuries (meaning that she did not receive any injuries to her body prior to her death)
6. The sphenoid sinus was found to have approximately 1ml of liquid (this is the air space located in the brain consistent with drowning)
7. Liquid was also found in the lungs of the deceased, which is consistent with drowning.

The GPF also said a comprehensive toxicological study of the blood and gastric contents is being conducted by the National Medical Services (NMS) Laboratories in the United States.

Also, police said tissue specimens are undergoing histological analysis by Mount Sinai’s board-certified forensic and diagnostic pathologists in the United States.

“The purpose of the post-mortem toxicology analysis is to detect, identify, and quantify drugs, alcohol, poisons, or other toxic substances present in the deceased’s body. This analysis helps determine whether any of these substances were present and, if so, whether they contributed to the death of the deceased,” police said.

The law enforcement agency hoped that Wednesday’s statement brings clarity to the matter.

“The Guyana Police Force hereby advises against the dissemination of malicious and unfounded rumors, fanciful and uneducated opinions and reckless speculations on this very grave and important matter.”

Speaking with the media shortly after meeting with the Police Commissioner, Dr Todd, who is a former police officer, told reporters that, “Won’t it not have been better to say that the entire autopsy process is incomplete and, therefore, it will be premature at this stage to pronounce on a possible cause of death?”.

The GPF said it was rather unfortunate that Mr. Todd attempted to “blatantly mislead the public by his erroneous utterances and uninitiated opinions in a highly technical scientific field.”

“Professional comity and common courtesy demand that he defers to the opinion of three renowned international experts in the field.”