A 20-year-old man and his 11-year-old lover of Crane Village, West Coast Demerara hanged themselves early yesterday morning in a jamoon tree ending their star-crossed, four-month love affair.

Dead are Zaheer Williams and Amanda Hernandez of Nouvelle Flanders and Crane, West Coast Demerara respectively.

The couple, according to reports, had stolen away on many days to meet each other and went missing since Thursday morning prompting their parents to mount a search for them. It was around 1:30 pm yesterday that residents of Crane saw the couple tied to each other hanging from the jamoon tree near to a rice field. They used a green polythene rope to hang themselves. On closer inspection, their parents observed a clock below the tree and two letters on the ground.

Speaking to this newspaper yesterday a relative of Hernandez said her mother left home around 11 am on Thursday leaving the girl and three other siblings in the house. Shortly after, Hernandez went downstairs telling her eldest brother that she was going to the toilet. She never returned. “So after we see she teking so long we decide to check in the toilet and she was not there and we start to wonder wheh she deh.”

According to the relative, they later decided to check at Williams’ home, noting that despite her mother’s disapproval of the relationship she would, from time to time, get away and visit Williams at his home.

The relative said that prior to Hernandez leaving the house for the toilet, Williams was seen in the yard. Stabroek News was told that the couple had been seeing each other for about four months. Despite being scolded, they did not end the relationship.

The relative said that all night on Thursday checks were made in the village and a report was lodged at the Vreed-en-Hoop Police Station. The search resumed yesterday morning along the backlands and at the homes of relatives of both persons.

It was while sitting on her front steps that one of Hernandez’s relatives observed two bodies hanging from the tree beyond a rice field.

The relative said in one of the letters, which was found at the scene, Hernandez complained to Williams that she was constantly verbally abused by her mother for her relationship with him. The relative said that from all indications they had planned their demise. One of the letters said: “Alright honey. It is 4 am and is time for us to die.”

Once the bodies were found the police were called in and assisted relatives in untying the rope from the tree and bringing them to the ground. Stabroek News observed that the rope was tightly pulled across both their necks.

Hernandez was clad in a brown and black top and a cream silk skirt while Williams wore a white vest and a pair of cream three-quarter pants. Neither wore shoes.

Residents said that Williams, who had recently written CXC exams, was a technician while Hernandez did not attend school.

Their bodies were picked up around 3 pm yesterday and transported to the Newburg Funeral Parlour.