Police say the main suspect in the murder of 15-year-old Malini Persad remains in custody pending the ongoing investigation into her death.
The teenager was last seen on April 13, and her decomposing remains were found in a forested area in Barrackpore on April 17, with scavenger birds feeding on them.
Southern Division police and members of the NGO Hunters Search and Rescue Team (HSRT) led by Vallence Rambharat also found a noose, made with rope, near the remains.
The remains were so badly decomposed that she could only be identified by the clothes she was last seen wearing.
Persad, who was autistic and suffered from seizures, was also believed to have been raped.
The 52-year-old suspect was held the same day Persad's body was found.
Police say the man is suspected to have information pertinent to the investigation into the sexual assault of another female teenager in south Trinidad.
They have not revealed what led them to arrest the suspect, but relatives confirmed he lived near to Persad.
Persad, a form two student at ASJA Girls’ College in Barrackpore, lived at Rochard Douglas Road while the suspect lived metres away, on a side street.
A source told Newsday the family was tipped off by a friend who did not initially know Persad was missing.
When the friend found out, he called the family and told them he last saw her with the suspect.
The source added when police went to the suspect’s home, his relatives also confirmed to police they saw Persad with him.
Persad’s father told Newsday he had not yet been given any updates on the investigation as police told him little could be done over the Easter weekend.
He said his daughter’s autopsy was scheduled for April 22, and although DNA tests had not yet been done, he was almost sure the remains were his daughter’s.
“At this stage we are 90 per cent sure it is her. But we have to wait until after this long weekend for the official confirmation when they do their tests and the autopsy.”
Persad’s father said, although the suspect lived nearby, he had never met him and was unsure how Persad could have known him as she rarely ever left home unsupervised.
“We drop her and pick her back up from school every day.”
“She wasn’t on social media either, so I can’t say she knows him from there.
“The only social media she really uses is YouTube. She likes to watch her little videos and thing on there. She is YouTube fanatic.”
Public Relations Officer for the Autistic Society of TT (ASTT) Sarah Soo Hon said the society was devastated to hear the news.
She urged the public to rally around families of autistic people and support them when they could.
“Many of our families may feel very impacted, and we do want to urge members of the public if they have people in their life or community with autism, that they keep an extra eye on them and support them and their families if they can.
“We want to remind members of the public many autistic people are often in vulnerable situations because they don’t have access to some services and support the
