St. John’s Antigua : When Jemmo Shaw threw a black nylon rope into the back of his white Toyota Corolla and drove off from his Golden Grove home yesterday morning, his relatives found it strange but had no idea he might later use it to hang himself.
The 33-year-old was found hanging from a tamarind tree along a deserted footpath in the Yeptons area around 1:20 pm yesterday.
“He ate, talked a bit and then left. Everything seemed all right when he went out so nobody expect to hear anything like this,” the dead man’s grandfather James Shaw said.
The deceased, who had been due to take up a new job at a construction site yesterday, never turned up to his intended employer.
According to the dead man’s uncle-in-law, the rope from which the deceased was found hanging, was previously used to “hold up” a papaya tree in his yard at the Golden Grove property they shared.
“I had put the rope on the tree when it broke and never removed it. I saw him move the rope but I didn’t see anything wrong with it,” the distraught relative said. “If I had any clue he was going to take his life, I would’ve taken that rope from him.”
The uncle-in-law and the dead man’s aunt said they couldn’t bear to see the body of their loved one. While they all said they had no idea what could have led to the suspected suicide, they noted the deceased had been behaving strangely since Tuesday night.
When the grandfather went to identify the body, Shaw was still dressed in the blue three quarter pants and white T-shirt he had left home wearing.
His slippers were found under the tree, near his car A 26766. In the immediate surroundings of the scene, several old electronic items, pieces of wood and clothing were dumped.
An old white Whirlpool 16.3 cubic feet refrigerator stood under the tree and relatives theorised Jemmo Shaw dragged it from the dump and then climbed onto his car to get atop the rusting kitchen appliance and into the tree.
They believe he tied the rope to the tree before making a noose around his neck and plunging to his death.
A passerby who frequents the trail found the body and summoned the police. Lawmen issued a press statement on the matter yesterday saying foul pay has not been ruled out.
Investigators removed the car, rope and slippers from the scene while the body was taken to Straffie’s funeral home.
The homicide quad, forensic unit and officers from Grays Farm Police Station are probing the death.
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