The grieving family of a 39-year-old Siparia woman, Cristeen Gopaul — whose skeletal remains are strongly believed to be hers after being recovered from a wooded area off Penal Rock Road on September 10 — is issuing a urgent public appeal to the national government to expand accessible, safe shelter facilities across the country for women escaping domestic abuse.
Speaking on condition of anonymity in a phone interview with the *Sunday Express* this past Thursday, a close relative of Gopaul confirmed the woman had been a long-term victim of systematic domestic abuse, a struggle she hid entirely from her family for years. Over the two years before her disappearance, Gopaul survived multiple violent assaults that left her with broken bones, and she suffered a pregnancy loss in December 2024 linked to the abuse. Just one month after the miscarriage, Gopaul vanished without a clear trace.
Though multiple family members reached out to Gopaul repeatedly, offering emotional support, practical guidance and a safe place to stay, the years of abuse had left her isolated and unwilling to open up to her loved ones. “She looked normal on the outside, but we could tell she was deeply troubled and struggling with severe depression,” the relative shared. “Even when we pressed her about what was going on, she would get angry and tell us to stay out of her life.”
The relative is convinced that if accessible, professional safe spaces had been available to Gopaul when she needed help, the outcome could have been very different. “Women need places where they feel safe enough to speak honestly about what they’re going through,” the relative explained. “If she couldn’t turn to us, having a trained professional — especially another woman — she could reach out to would have made all the difference. We need the government to fund and establish these dedicated institutions across the country. Most of all, women need to know they have value, and they deserve better than someone who won’t respect them.”
According to the timeline shared by the family, Gopaul was last spotted in public on February 17, at the Ice Breakers Bar And Lounge in Penal, in the company of a male acquaintance. Her last contact with her family came on March 15, when she reached out briefly to say she was in danger and needed help before cutting off communication. After that message, the family launched their own independent searches for Gopaul across the region, but came up empty-handed.
It was not until early September, when growing fears that Gopaul had been killed solidified, that the family officially filed a missing person report with the Siparia Police Station on September 3. They then contacted the Hunters Search and Rescue Team (HSRT), a registered volunteer search group led by commander Shamsudeen Ayube, to assist in locating Gopaul.
After eight consecutive days of searching the rugged, forested terrain off Penal Rock Road, the HSRT team recovered scattered human remains covering an area roughly 1.8 meters (six feet) across. Along with the bones — which include a complete skull, ribcage, and other large skeletal fragments — searchers found a black floral dress, undergarments, and a single pink slipper, items the family confirmed match clothing Gopaul owned when she disappeared.
The district medical officer attended the recovery site immediately, and ordered the remains transferred to the mortuary at San Fernando General Hospital for a full post-mortem examination. While the family says it remains unclear whether the post-mortem has been completed, they have been informed that official DNA test results to confirm the identity of the remains will take six months to process.
Despite the long wait for formal confirmation, the family has no doubt the remains belong to Gopaul. They are currently holding off on planning Gopaul’s funeral and final burial rites until they receive official identification. “All we want right now is to bring her home properly, and go from there,” the relative said.