Goa Congress demands probe

Paji, Jan 19: The Congress on Tuesday demanded a probe into an alleged scuffle US tiol Caitanya Lila Holt - who died in a north Goa village on January 12 - had with a gang of Nigerian drug peddlers a short while before his death. “The police appears to be covering up the fact that he had a fight with a Nigerian gang dealing in drugs. This aspect should be probed,” Congress spokesperson Agnelo Ferndes told IANS.

Ohio-born Holt, 30, died mysteriously, reportedly choking on mud in Korgao village in north Goa, after he was chased by villagers and policemen after being mistaken for a thief. A post-mortem on the body in the presence of US consular officials by a panel of government forensic doctors on Sunday revealed that Holt died of asphyxia after inhaling muddy water. The post-mortem also revealed injuries of non-fatal ture on the body. While the government said the foreign tiol choked on mud, the opposition called the death technically a murder and demanded a Central Bureau of Investigation probe. “We have no faith in the Goa Police. The CBI should probe the case. Holt’s death will also affect Goa’s image as a tourism destition. Who will want to come to a place where a tourist has been chased and murdered?” Ferndes said. (IANS)