By CECILY ASSON Thursday, September 6 2012

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IN SHOCK: Relatives and friends of chopping victim Donna George in shock outside her home in Moruga yesterday. George was found with her neck almost s...

A 48-YEAR-OLD woman was found dead on a mattress with her neck almost severed on Tuesday night inside her St Mary’s Village, Moruga, home. A man, who was sitting near to the woman’s body, calmly surrendered to police and up to last night, was still in custody assisting officers with their investigation.

According to a police report, at about 7 pm on Tuesday, officers received a report and when they arrived at the house, a 59-year-old employee of the Ministry of Food Production, surrendered to the officers.

On the mattress, Donna George’s body was wrapped in a bed sheet up to her chest.

A bloodstained cutlass, found near the scene which is believed to be the murder weapon has been seized. Shocked relatives of the woman said they believe she was killed following rumours that she had been unfaithful to the suspect, with whom she shared a common-law relationship for the past 30 years.

“The last thing my sister told me, was that if (name of the suspect called) told her to admit that she was unfaithful, she (Donna) would be ready to die because she would not admit to something that she did not do. And that is just what happened. He killed her,” Debra George told Newsday yesterday.

Debra said Donna was her only sister and she had no children. The man, Debra said, had accused her sister (Donna) of having an affair with one of his relatives. Debra steadfastly denied this, Donna said, even when she was threatened and beaten by the suspect.

“She had spent a week by me and when it was time for her to go home, I begged her to stay with me. I knew she was going to her death. On August 30, he put a cutlass to my sister’s throat and told her to say ‘yes’, that she did have an affair. But my sister insisted that she was never unfaithful,” Debra said.

The rumours of Donna’s alleged unfaithfulness began to circulate about three months ago, Donna said. “He used to torture my sister to try and get her to confess. I told her to leave him, but she said she would give him a second chance,” Donna said.

An eight-year-old male relative of the suspect, who was asleep in the house on Tuesday night, was the one who discovered Donna’s body. The suspect reportedly told the eight-year-old to go to the next door neighbour Eugenia Guevarro.

Guevarro told Newsday when she arrived at the house, she saw Donna on a mattress lying face down, with blood seeping from a large chop wound to the neck.

“He was threatening to kill her. I told him not to do that. I really thought those were idle threats,” Guevarro said.

A party of officers including Supt Maynard, ASP Zamsheed Mohammed, Insp Williams and officers of the Southern Division Homicide Bureau visited the scene and Cpl Braithwaite of the St Mary’s Police Station is continuing investigations.