Councillor urges vigilance after alleged abduction, sexual assault of 10-year-old in Clarendon

Councillor Scean Barnswell is urging residents and other stakeholders to intensify their vigilance and assist the police investigation into the reported abduction and sexual assault of a 10-year-old girl in Mineral Heights, Clarendon, on Tuesday morning.

The child was reportedly on her way to school when she exited a taxi near the entrance to the Mineral Heights Housing Scheme, and was approached by a man who reportedly persuaded her to enter a vehicle.

She was reportedly taken to a neighbouring community, sexually assaulted in bushes, and later returned to the vicinity of her school. The child managed to reach the school and alert staff, and has since been admitted to hospital.

Barnswell, who heads the Hayes division in southeast Clarendon where the incident unfolded, raised the matter during this month’s sitting of the Clarendon Municipal Corporation. He stressed that children should be able to move through their communities without fear.

“Unfortunately, what happened in Mineral Heights on Tuesday was really, really regrettable, unfortunate, and should be condemned by all,” he said.

Barnswell is appealing to residents to share any information that could help investigators, particularly CCTV and dashcam footage that may have captured the incident.

“If you have a CCTV camera that picked up what happened, share it with the police,” he urged, while also encouraging anyone who may have seen or knows anything about the vehicle involved to come forward.

The incident has also had a personal resonance for Barnswell, coming months after he and his wife rescued a six-year-old girl who had been abducted from her school last December. The suspect in that case was subsequently taken into police custody.

Reflecting on that experience, Barnswell warned against the tendency to simply “mind your own business” when something appears wrong.

Barnswell stressed that community safety cannot be regarded as the sole responsibility of the police.

“We have to be more sensitive, we have to be more alert, and aware of what is happening in our society, in our space,” he said.

He added: “Community is safety... community is safety and security.”

- Olivia Brown

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