Commentary

Mystery death, mystery Daddy

THE STORY OF Tameka McFarquhar and her 11 days old baby, both found dead in a New York apartment, is a fascinating, though sad, read.

Going through the story, there is a striking absence which is addressed only at the very end - and, even then, in a way which heightens, rather than satisfies, the interest.

A woman dies in an apartment, along with her 11-day-old baby, her family believing that the child starved to death after the mother died. So where, one immediately questions, was the father?

The dead woman's family does not know. Her friend Connie would only say "I am not able to give out that information."

Mystery upon mystery.

It is unfortunate, but true, that when a person dies under mysterious circumstances, the first person who comes under suspicion, if any is warranted, is hir or her partner. In this case, the story gives no indication that there were wounds on Tameka McFarquhar, only saying that a toxicology report would have to be done.

Fair enough - except that the report will be ready in two to six weeks, while the mother and child will be buried in Jamaica tomorrow.

The mystery deepens.

It is sure to be a funeral with strong undercurrents to the overwhelming grief that the double death - and especially the circumstances of the baby's demise - has brought and will bring. But there is the matter of closure, of satisfying the living about the manner in which their loved ones passed on. Until the triple mystery - death, father and child - is resolved, a family in May Pen, Clarendon, will not know peace.