BODY of Missing 12-Year-Old Girl Found In Forested Area In Erin — Police Investigating
UPDATE 8: Police have confirmed that the 26-year-old man in custody is to be charged with murder following investigations surrounding the death of 12-year-old Mercedes Layne. The suspect has been publicly identified as Richard Renales of Dickie Trace, Beach Road, Palo Seco. Renales is expected to appear before a High Court Master on Thursday (11th June, 2026).
The charge is expected to be formally laid by Woman Corporal Dyer-Baptiste of the Homicide Bureau of Investigations (HBI) Region III.
UPDATE 7: New surveillance video has emerged, recorded on Saturday (6th June, 2026), which shows the suspect’s station wagon entering Los Iros Road, where he was supposed to drop off Mercedes, before coming to a stop near a supermarket. However, moments later, the driver is seen reversing the vehicle then heading in the direction of Carapal Road.
The vehicle is said to have continued along Carapal Road for several minutes before driving up a hill near the WASA pumping station. This is the same area that Mercedes’ battered body was later discovered.
UPDATE 6: Crime Watch Host Ian Alleyne visited the home of the 26-year-old murder suspect at Dickie Trace, Beach Road, Palo Seco, on Monday (8th June, 2026), where he lived with his family before his recent arrest.
He remains in Police custody as investigations continue into this horrific case.
UPDATE 5: Mercedes died from blunt force injuries about her body, according to an autopsy conducted today (Monday 8th June, 2026) by Forensic Pathologist, Dr. Parthasarathi Pramanik. The findings have intensified the investigation into the murder of the Erin schoolgirl. The main suspect is still in Police custody at this time.
UPDATE 4: A Police report states that the deceased was found clad only in a green T-shirt and was nude from the waist down. Investigators also observed visible injuries to her forehead.
Crime scene investigators reportedly recovered several items of evidential value, including a right-foot slipper, a pair of blue denim shorts, green and pink underwear, a cream-coloured cloth, a black plastic bag containing four (4) packs of ramen noodles, a pack of Lucky Strike cigarettes, a broken Stag beer bottle and a circular piece of wood.
Investigators also bagged both hands of the deceased as part of the forensic examination.
UPDATE 3: Officers have detained a 26-year-old man of Dickie Trace, Beach Road, Palo Seco, in connection with this brutal murder. He was allegedly the driver of the PH vehicle that Mercedes entered. The suspect remains in Police custody as enquiries continue.
The killing has sparked grief and outrage across Trinidad and Tobago, with citizens demanding justice for the young schoolgirl whose disappearance and death have shaken the nation.
UPDATE 2: Mercedes was said to have been looking forward to a school outing to Mount St. Benedict on Monday (8th June, 2026), a trip she was excited to attend. She had reportedly left her grandfather’s home and boarded a PH vehicle on her way to her mother’s nearby residence (a 5 minute drive), but sadly, never arrived.
Her distraught father, Ronald Cabrera, told reporters he knows the young individuals who may be responsible for his daughter’s murder, stating, “I’m not going to stop looking for these gentlemen.”
Trinidad and Tobago is mourning the tragic loss of 12-year-old Mercedes Cabrera of Los Iros, Erin, whose body was discovered today along Carapal Road, Erin.
— CNC3TV (@CNC3TV) June 7, 2026
Mercedes had reportedly left her grandfather’s home and boarded a PH vehicle on her way to her mother’s nearby residence.… pic.twitter.com/NkLdISmEKp
This heartbreaking incident has left her family, friends, classmates, and the wider community in shock and grief.
UPDATE: Reports state that Mercedes was found semi-nude, with apparent blunt force injuries to the face. The discovery was made by a man who went to the area to service an oil well.
Minister in the Ministry of Public Utilities and La Brea MP, Clyde Elder, also visited the scene as investigations continue.
EDITOR’S NOTE: The body of this article has been updated with new details.
The nation is in mourning as a missing schoolgirl was tragically found brutally murdered in Erin this morning (Sunday 7th June, 2026). The deceased has been identified as 12-year-old Mercedes Cabrera Layne of Los Iros, Erin, a student of Erin R.C. School.
She was reported missing at the Erin Police Station by her father on Saturday afternoon (6th June, 2026), after she failed to arrive home. A vehicle linked to her murder was recovered before her body was found.
Opposition Leader Pennelope Beckles issued a heartfelt statement this morning, expressing profound sorrow and extending condolences to Mercedes’ family. Beckles emphasized that the devastating news has shaken the entire country, touching not only her loved ones but also classmates, teachers at Erin R.C. School, and the wider Erin community.
Beckles said the following in her statement:
May Mercedez rest in eternal peace, and may her family find strength and comfort in the support and prayers of a grieving nation.”
According to reports, the child was placed into a purple-coloured station wagon by her grandfather, Morriso Gastoigne, shortly before 12:00 PM on Saturday (6th June, 2026), at Lorensette North Trace, Rancho Quemado, to be taken to her home at Los Iros Road, Erin. However, she never reached her destination.
The unknown driver, who was reportedly the sole occupant of the vehicle at the time, was described as being of African descent, brown in complexion, and slimly built with a Rastafarian hairstyle. The man had reportedly agreed to take the child straight to her home. However, investigators were informed that the vehicle passed Mercedes’ intended drop-off point along Los Iros Road and proceeded onto Carapal Road, one street away, where her body was subsequently discovered.
Following the missing persons report filed by her father, Police immediately launched an extensive search operation. Officers conducted checks at several locations across Erin and surrounding districts, interviewed relatives and other persons who may have had information on the child’s movements, and pursued multiple leads throughout Saturday evening, into the night, and early into Sunday morning.
A contingent of Police Officers, including investigators from the Homicide Bureau of Investigations (HBI) Region III, personnel from the South Western Division, the Anti-Kidnapping Unit (AKU), Special Investigations Unit (SIU), Cyber Crime and Social Media Unit, and other specialized units, worked throughout Saturday night in an intensive effort to locate the missing schoolgirl. Members of the Hunters Search and Rescue Team (HSRT), led by Captain Vallence Rambharat, were also involved.
Police reportedly received a false lead which claimed Mercedes was spotted outside KFC in Siparia around 4:00 PM on Saturday afternoon.
As the search intensified, Officers recovered a vehicle in Palo Seco believed to be connected to the investigation, during the early hours of Sunday morning. The vehicle was secured and became a major focus of enquiries as investigators continued their efforts to locate Mercedes.
A team of Officers was also actively searching for both the driver and the vehicle they had identified as being linked to the investigation, up to 5:00 AM on Sunday morning.
Tragically, around 6:43 AM, a worker employed with Trinity Exploration and Production Services arrived at Well ER-46 to carry out maintenance work, and discovered the child’s motionless body near the well site in a forested area, off a gravel roadway, near a WASA pumping station off Carapal Road, Erin, and alerted the Police.
Detectives are now working to determine exactly what transpired between the time Mercedes entered the vehicle and the discovery of her body.
No suspect is currently in custody as investigators continue to process both the crime scene and the recovered vehicle for forensic evidence.
The murder is said to have sent shockwaves throughout the Erin community and across the country, with many expressing grief and outrage over the killing of the 12-year-old schoolgirl.
Investigations are continuing into this horrific tragedy.
More on this as it becomes available.
This is a developing story - refresh this page for updates.
[Source: Ian Alleyne]
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