The Ministry of Justice has slammed the Jamaica Observer for aspects of a story published on Wednesday, May 20, headlined 'Sexual savagery', and reporting on the number of children falling victim to sex crimes since March when restrictions were put in place to stem the spread of COVID-19.
According to the ministry, the information presented by the Observer from an interview with executive director of the Victim Services Division Osbourne Bailey is a gross misrepresentation of the facts and figures presented by him.
“We express our deep dismay at quotes and perceptions which were purported to be representative of an interview with Osbourne Bailey, executive director of the Victim Services Division at the Ministry.
“High number of children fall victim to sex crimes since COVID-19 restrictions started in March”.
“According to Bailey, of the just over 700 victims who came into contact with the division in March, 368 were new, while for the month of April there were 379 new cases” which segues to “The crimes that are associated with these numbers are a wide range of sex-related crimes, which is a cause for alarm.”
