The Tribune

By AVA TURNQUEST

Tribune Chief Reporter

aturnquest@tribunemedia.net

POLICE yesterday denied claims the eight-year-old girl abducted early Sunday morning had been sexually assaulted.

The girl’s mother alleged her child had been violated; however, Assistant Commissioner Clayton Fernander told The Tribune preliminary medical examinations did not support the claim.

The child was expected to be seen by a gynaecologist yesterday for further analysis. ACP Fernander said he could not speak to the follow up visit, but stressed there was “nothing to suggest the young lady was sexually assaulted”.

He furthered there was an entire team of officials working her case, adding the family was brought in for a full briefing yesterday.

The young girl was reportedly working with police to produce a sketch of her abductor yesterday.

“We have a fine team of officers,” ACP Fernander said, “Social Services is on board. We have a full team including uniformed officers and detectives.”

The eight-year-old girl was taken from her home in Culmerville sometime after 1am on Sunday, and later found in the area of Woodlawn Gardens, Soldier Road sometime after 3am. During that time, the man allegedly took the young girl to a home where he touched her and threatened to kill her, her mother told this newspaper.

Residents and loved ones at the home on Sunday said the ordeal evoked the memory of Marco Archer’s abduction and killing in 2011. The matter has also renewed calls for the immediate implementation of the MARCO Alert - named after the slain child.

Yesterday, Opposition Leader Philip Davis and PLP Shadow Minister for National Security Glenys Hanna Martin echoed concerned over the stalled implementation of the alert system.

For her part, Mrs Hanna Martin also expressed concern over an apparent lag or delay in the reporting of child kidnappings by police. She pledged her party’s “full and unqualified” support for heightened police activity and policy initiatives targeting the “horrific phenomenon” and raising public awareness.

“We believe it is accepted that timely alerts are important and allow for the community to be vigilant and may possibly enhance the chances of protecting children in such circumstances,” she said.

“We strongly urge the minister of national security to prioritise the implementation of the MARCO Alert as it can prove to be an important tool in protecting the wellbeing of children and possibly saving lives.

“It is of grave concern that we may be witnessing a greatly disturbing trend of victimisation of the most vulnerable in our society, our children.”

At his monthly press briefing yesterday, Mr Davis also expressed concern over the conduct of investigations, particularly that the mother was made to pay for medical scans.

When The Tribune visited the home on Monday, the girl’s mother was visibly stressed over her inability to pay for certain scans for her daughter. The scans were requested by doctors at Princess Margaret Hospital, and vital to her case.

The scans ordered by PMH cost around $197, and the mother was able to pay for it from a private donation Monday afternoon.

Yesterday, Mr Davis said: “It’s an investigation and if it is properly carried out, the state takes up the cost of that investigation. If you call the police and they say listen someone has broken into my home, you don’t pay for the taxi to bring the police officers to your house to investigate whether is that so. That is part of the state’s responsibility in protecting its citizens, which is one of their cardinal responsibility - to secure the safety, both personal and property, of its citizens.”