Uptick in sexual offences in St Elizabeth
Five accused sex offenders among a list of six wanted men
WHILE THE numbers are not staggering, based on the latest Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) serious crimes report, St Elizabeth has seen the largest increase in sexual offences this year, with six cases.
This represents a 400 per cent increase over the two recorded in the comparative period last year.
The situation was amplified earlier this week when it turned out that five of the seven persons listed as wanted by Acting Superintendent Coleridge Minto, the police commander for St Elizabeth, have been implicated in sexual offences committed in the parish.
In a media statement, the commander gave the men until 2 p.m. on Thursday, March 7 to turn themselves in to the authorities.
Interestingly, it should be noted that, like St Elizabeth, the parishes of St James and Westmoreland have also recorded increases over the comparative period last year; while the other two western parishes, Hanover and Trelawny, have seen a decline.
Westmoreland has seen a 150 per cent increase, moving up from two to five; St James has seen a 100 per cent increase, with sex offences up from four to eight.
Trelawny has seen a decline from two to one, while Hanover, where the police have had a strong sensitisation programme over recent years to protect the female population from sexual predators, is down from five to three.
“During my tenure, we had officers going into the schools to talk to the students about what to look out for as it relates to handling unwanted sexual advances, and how to avoid getting into situations they cannot handle,” said Superintendent Sharon Beeput, who was recently transferred from the Hanover to a new assignment in St James.
“We would also used widely publicised community meetings to encourage the women to seek the assistance of the police if they feel they are being harassed by men who are seeking to pressure them into unwanted sexual activities,” she added.
Efforts were made to get a comment from the Centre for the Investigation of Sexual Offences and Child Abuse (CISOCA) but The Gleaner was told that Senior Superintendent Maldria Jones-Williams, who heads the unit, is the only person authorised to speak on behalf of the unit, and she was unavailable.
The men who are wanted for sexual offences by the St Elizabeth police are Lincoln Farquharson, who is wanted for rape and grievous sexual assault; Devon Blake, wanted for having sexual intercourse with a person under the age of 16; David Pottinger, wanted for having sexual intercourse with a person under the age of 16; Lloyd White, of a Manchester address, who is wanted for rape; and Aldaine Bailey, who is wanted for buggery.
“We are urging these men to turn themselves in to the police by 2 p.m. on Thursday (March 7),” said the St Elizabeth police commander.
While all incidents of rape are considered as grievous acts against the victims, an all-time low was hit in Westmoreland in January when a 91-year-old woman who lived alone was raped by a man who had broken into her house.
The Westmoreland Municipal Corporation has since begun making plans to relocate her to the parish’s infirmary, which is being viewed as a much safer environment than her being home alone.