JOBLESS AND HURTING - Father of stolen baby at pains to feed his family

Walton Evans, the St James sanitation worker who had his baby daughter stolen from him in 2018, is now faced with difficulties meeting his daily needs.

He has not worked since March, and to compound his problems, Evans said that he is in constant pain, which he said resulted from a beat down on Valentine's Day, allegedly at the hands of an off-duty soldier.

Evans, 43, a street sweeper with the National Solid Waste Management Authority (NSWMA), said that he managed to work for two days after the beating, but was then sent home by his supervisor who told him that he was unfit for work. He said that while he was home recuperating, his contract with the NSWMA expired. It has not been renewed, and this has made life miserable for Evans and his family of three.

"Right yah now, a some dasheen, banana and vegetable mi haffi a try plant because mi caah just sit dung suh and mek mi family dead fi hungry," said Evans.

Evans and his common-law-wife, Latoya Whyte, have been afflicted with their fair share of ordeals. Their three-week-old daughter, Vernisha, was snatched from her mother at the Cornwall Regional Hospital (CRH) in Montego Bay on January 4, 2019.

The baby was found a few days later, and the baby snatcher charged. Evans admitted they were having difficulties taking care of the baby, and a Family Court judge in St James ordered the Child Protection and Family Services Agency to provide supervision and mentoring services for Vernesha.

When THE WEEKEND STAR visited Evans at his family home in Tangle River, St James, he cried bitterly as he recalled the day he got the beating. Evans said that he went to get his wife a pizza as a Valentine's Day gift.

"Mi join the line and wait over a hour, but mi realise seh every minute somebody else come and cut the line and the security guard a let them in. Mi get vex and mi an the security guard start argue, and mi tell him seh mi naw mek nobody else bore pass mi, but wen mi look mi si a brown lady come, and him let har in, mi push pass him an walk go a the cashier an pay fi mi pizza," Evans said.

He said that while he was walking back from the cashier, with his ticket in hand, a man walked up to him and landed a fist to his face. He said that he was then dragged from inside the establishment by the man, who he claimed rained punches and licks all over his body.

"Is when some people seh it look like him dead the man stop kick mi and walk weh," Evans said.

He told THE WEEKEND STAR that while he was lying on the ground his wife called and he told her what had happened. He was advised to seek medial care, which he did at CRH.

Evans said that he reported the matter at the Barnett Street Police Station in Montego Bay. The man who Evans alleged beat him up also gave a statement to the police. No charges have been laid in the matter, which is said to be under investigation.

In the meantime, Garnett Edmanson, manager at the NSWMA western office, told T HE WEEKEND STAR that Evans could be called back to work shortly.

"In March he went on a contract break, and I think his contract should be on the way back by now because I remember some drivers went off just before him and they came back last week, so his contract should start soon," she said.

For Evans, that call can't come soon enough. He has been trying everything, from odd jobs to farming, but the absence of a constant flow of income has him hurting.

"Mi have mi daughter an mi wife who depend pon mi fi eat every day, and di soldier do mi so bad that mi can hardly work yah now," said Evans, who added that "Every time mi jam the fork inna the dirt mi whole body pain mi."