WHY SO MANY DIFFERENCES?

Two interesting stories appear in the Saturday Newsday and Express. They both tell the story of a young woman chopped to death by her former lover. But that's where the similarity in information ends.

Rhondor Dowlat of the Newsday says "A SCREAMING Tineka Constantine, aged three, watched in horror as her mother was being chopped to death by a close male relative...".
But Darryl Heeralal of the Express says "As the man unleashed his savage violence on the 20-year-old Constantine, chopping off some of her fingers, then across the mouth cutting away her teeth and opening her skull with two blows, little T'nika, two, kept running back and forth between her mother and the road.
Relatives said T'nika has been unable to cry and was not able to even scream as she witnessed the man, who held her as a baby, take her mother's life with the same hands."
So one account says she kept screaming, while the other says she did not even cry.

Even the victim's name and age are different. The Express has 23 year old "Sylona" while the Newsday has 20 year old "Salona". And her daughter's name is also spelt differently, while she is two years old in one story and three in the other.

Darryl's editorialised account of the event continued with "She was being stalked by the man who had only murder on his mind."
And how do you know that? Did you have a conversation with him before he went to the house?

Even the initial contact between the victim and her killer differs significantly. Heeralal writes "She was killed around 7.30 p.m., ambushed as she walked down from her house to go to a neighbour to collect a phone."; while Dowlat's account is that "According to a police report, at about 7.30 pm, Salona Constantine, 20, was called out (of the house) by the man who came to visit Tineka."
So who is correct?

Heeralal: "Two months ago Constantine left the man, after spending four years of turmoil with him."
Dowlat: "Rivas (victim's grandmother) said that the couple was separated for the past three months."
This young woman's story unfortunately gives credence to the saying that you shouldn't believe everything you read.

And here are some more colourful adjectives from Mr Heeralal:
"...hacked his estranged lover to death..."; "...hacked to death in front of her daughter..."; "...the man unleashed his savage violence..."; "...suspect ran after committing his murderous act...". Were they really necessary?

NOTE: Camille Clarke of the Guardian also writes that the victim's name is "Sylona" and she is 20 years old; she also writes that the child is two years old, and that the woman went outside the house to collect a cellphone from her jeep when she was attacked.

And here's another one: the Guardian reports that there have been 16 murders since the general election, but the Express tells us the figure is 18.