One-Minute Reads: News across Jamaica

Farmer charged for assault

A St Ann farmer has been charged with several offences related to an incident last October.

Andre Phillips, 34, otherwise called 'Shabba' and 'Frass', of Woodstock district, Claremont, has been charged with illegal possession of firearm, assault at common law, unlawful wounding, and assault occasioning grievous bodily harm.

Reports from the Claremont police are that about 11:30 p.m. on October 8, Phillips ordered a drink at a business establishment and made his payment. The operator of the establishment left and upon her return, Phillips attacked her and threw a glass bottle at her. He then pulled a firearm from his waistband, which he used to hit her on the head. She fell to the ground and was kicked all over her body. Phillips proceeded to point the gun at her; however, she managed to escape. Another man who was in the building was beaten with the gun and injured.

The matter was reported to the police and an investigation launched. Phillips was arrested during a targeted operation on June 9 and was charged on June 20 after an identification parade. His court date is being finalised.

Foreign national held with ammunition

Forty-nine-year -old Christina Hedgepeth of North Carolina in the Unites States of America was charged with unauthorised possession of ammunition following a seizure at the Sangster International Airport in Montego Bay, St James, on Tuesday.

Reports are that about 11:47 a.m., Hedgepeth checked her bag to board a flight out of Montego Bay, when it was screened by port security and anomalies were detected. She was interviewed, and during a search of the bag, a black-and-grey magazine containing five .380 cartridges was found in an inside pocket. Hedgepeth was subsequently arrested and charged and is slated to appear in the St James Parish Court on Friday.

CPFSA providing counselling after ward drowns

The Child Protection and Family Services Agency (CPFSA) has been providing support to the relatives of 14-year-old Leroy Anderson, a ward of the State who drowned last Saturday at the Yallahs Bay Beach in St Thomas.

Following the incident, a team of first responders visited the home of the deceased to offer the necessary support and ascertain further details. Grief counselling was provided to the foster mother and other relatives, as well as to his classmates on Monday, through a visit to the St Thomas Technical High School, where he attended.

Follow-up visits will be done with the family and other affected children in the community, mainly those who witnessed the tragedy.

Reports are that Anderson, who was left in the care of a family friend by his foster mother, left home to go swimming at the beach with a group of children. He encountered difficulties and drowned. His body has not yet been recovered. At the time of his death, he was in the agency's Foster Care Programme.

Acting CEO of the CPFSA, Michelle McIntosh Harvey, said that when a child dies by any means, it is seen as a "great loss, because we want our children to enjoy their childhood to the fullest, to be protected at all times, and become successful men and women of tomorrow".

Four secondary schools being expanded

Expansion works are to be undertaken at four secondary schools to formally remove them from the shift system, according to Executive Director of the National Education Trust (NET), Latoya Harris-Ghartey.

They are Holmwood Technical, which will have its groundbreaking in July, followed by Exchange High in St Ann, and Cedric Titus and Albert Town High in Trelawny, leading up to September. Harris-Ghartey informed that work at some schools began in phases during previous financial years, and that has allowed them to informally remove the shift operation.

"We did do some expansion at Exchange High before [and] they're utilising the facilities; however, what we'll be doing is the final investment in infrastructure to ensure a smooth running," Harris-Ghartey noted. These include additional laboratories, a canteen, staffrooms and students' bathrooms.

"Under the Primary and Secondary Infrastructure Programme, we're doing project developmental work to see how best we can get those [other schools] prepared for execution in the next financial year," Harris-Ghartey said. Overall, the Ministry of Education and Youth earmarked approximately $1 billion for the programme for the current financial year.