New leads being sought in Precious and Keisha murder cases

It has been more than one year since the bodies of Precious Williams and Veronica ‘Keisha’ Small were discovered, in May and August 2022 respectively, and police have disclosed that information is being reviewed with the hope of finding new leads that could possibly lead to a breakthrough in the cases.

Assistant Commissioner of Police (Ag) Trevor Bailey provided an update on the two murder cases at a November 6 press briefing where he gave the assurance that the investigations were still open and active.

“Those two investigations are very much alive and ongoing. Work is being done every day.”

The body of 21-year-old Williams was discovered on May 16 last year, stuffed in a bag and dumped in a gutter at Richmond Hill in the vicinity of Joyette’s Garage. Her identity was only discovered days later after police released photos of Williams’s tattoos and jewellery. At the time, Williams’s boyfriend had been held for questioning but was later released. The cause of death was determined to be an injury to the neck.

Small, a mid 40’s Pole Yard resident, was found dead on August 25, 2022 on the runway of the decommissioned ET Joshua Airport in Arnos Vale with her pubic area exposed and a piece of PVC pipe inserted into her body. The circumstances surrounding her death were said to be unknown.

ACP Bailey told reporters that the cases continue to be a top priority for the Force and investigations are being pursued to find new leads.

“Since I have assumed office… I have personally sat down with the investigators who are members of the Major Crime Unit, heading these investigations. We have done a review of the statements, I have ordered investigations to be done along certain lines.”

He acknowledged the public interest in the murders of the two women and called on Vincentians to have faith in the Force to bring the cases to a close.

“I want you to believe in your investigators. We have proven before that we are more than capable of doing in-depth and technical investigations and these two crimes in particular are very high on our agenda. We are very hopeful that in a future press conference I’d be able to speak more definitively in regard to these two murder offences.”