POLICE investigators are looking at all possibilities as they probe the death of 20-year-old Victoria Brown Hanley at The University of the West Indies (UWI), Mona campus, on Thursday.

According to the police, Brown Hanley was alone in her room on the fourth floor of the George Alleyne Hall after her roommate left shortly after 1:00 am.

When the roommate returned, sometime after 6:00 am, she saw Brown Hanley lying face-down with a scarf wrapped tightly around her neck. The roommate removed the scarf and summoned campus security.

A team from the Mona Police Post also responded and it was subsequently confirmed that Brown Hanley, of a Mandeville, Manchester, address, was dead.

A team of detectives, including scenes of crime personnel, was quickly dispatched to the university campus, and Thursday afternoon, head of Jamaica Constabulary Area Four, Assistant Commissioner Michael Phipps said the investigators were taking statements and interviewing people.

“And, of course, in a short while we should be viewing CCTV footage that may have recorded something. We are at the very early stage of our investigation and there is not much we can say at this time, except to say that at this time we are treating this particular incident as a death investigation.

“As soon as we have more information we should be in a position to classify this particular death and, of course, the necessary course of action will follow,” said Phipps.

He added that the police are awaiting a post-mortem report which will be critical in determining the cause of death.

“We hope to have a very early post-mortem done,” added Phipps, who gave no credence to initial reports that this was another case of suicide.

A pall of gloom covered much of The UWI Mona campus Thursday morning as news spread about the death of the student on a residential hall.

Several students rushed to the scene with administrators quick to offer them support.

Deputy principal of the Mona campus Dr Tomlin Paul told the Jamaica Observer that there was deep regret over the death.

“We regret that we have lost one of our students this morning…it’s a very sad loss for us. We are currently with the police doing the investigations,” said Paul.

He added that the university has mobilised its support systems for students affected by the tragedy.

“The campus administration has come together and responded to support our students. Our principal Denzel Williams met with the students on the hall along with our senior administration. He also met with the parents of the person that we have lost, and we are conducting counselling.

“Our counselling team is out in full. Our chaplaincy team is out, and we are providing the support as needed to the campus community, particularly our students. We do regret this loss and we express our condolence to the family of the student at this time,” declared Paul.

In the meantime, Campus Registrar Dr Donovan Stanberry was quick to underscore the administration’s commitment to its student body.

“As evidenced by the turnout by the campus administration, we value our students. They are the reason why we exist as a university,” said Stanberry, as he pointed to the sombre mood among students.

Meanwhile, Campus Legal Officer Dr Peter Glegg told the Observer that university officials met with students to offer emotional and spiritual support.

“We prayed with them, we spoke with them, and the mood is many students are very sad,” said Glegg, who noted that support has been made available to the students and the family of Brown Henley, whose mother is a senior educator.

But some students expressed disquiet at what they described as the lack of visible mental health support on campus.

“I’m feeling a bit depressed and somewhat disappointed that there wasn’t a support network to help this person when they were going through such a difficult situation,” said one law student, who was reacting to the initial report that this was a case of suicide.

The law student claimed that many of his colleagues on the Mona campus are isolated and lack the support systems needed to cope.

“I would recommend that the university forms organisations that are openly known to exist for this purpose to assist people who are going through difficult times,” said the student.

However, Guild President Roshaun Wynter told the Observer that resources are in place on the campus for students facing mental health issues.

“The university has a number of mechanisms in place for this. We certainly, through our health centre, have a mental health support unit. There is the university psychologist and so forth. So what we have done so far is that they have come in, the chaplain of the university as well, and they have prayed, they have spoken with the floor mates… they have also taken the names and contact information of students who are closest to the incident,” said Wynter.

Reflecting on his interaction with Brown Hanley, who was a student in the Faculty of Social Sciences, Wynter said she was always very pleasant and humble.

— Carlysia Ramdeen

UWI, Mona campus administrators (from left) Marlon Nesbeth, director of security; Donovan Stanberry, campus registrar; Tomlin Paul,campus deputy principal; and Peter Clegg, legal officer, outside the hall where a student’s body was found on Thursday, October 16. (Photo: Llewellyn Wynter)

Students gather outside George Alleyne Hall on The UWI, Mona campus Thursday, October 16, after news spread that one of their colleagues had been found dead inside a room on the hall. (Photo: Llewellyn Wynter)

The George Alleyne Hall on The UWI, Mona campus in St Andrew. (Photo: Llewellyn Wynter)