Saint Catherine man freed from sexual offence case

Jamaica: A case of sexual offence was observed in the parish court of Saint Catherine in which a male suspect was facing trials under accusation of multiple charges in the matter. The accused man was freed by the court from the laid charges after his last appearance in front of the judge on Wednesday, 31 July. The suspect man was facing the allegation of getting involved sexually with a teenage girl.

The accused man in the case of a sexual offence against a teenage girl is identified by the police department and mentioned in reports as a local resident of the Saint Catherine parish in Jamaica. The name of the accused man was disclosed as per his documents, Heron Byfield, who lived in a residence located at Grove Farm in Bushy Park. Heron Byfield is a bus conductor in his field of occupation.

The accused man was caught by the police department after he was suspected as an offender. The man was named as a potential culprit of a sexual offence on a teenager, who was mentioned as a 16-year-old girl from the Saint Catherine parish. After the interrogation, Heron Byfield was laid with multiple charges of having sexual intercourse with a teen, including grievous sexual assault and sexual grooming of a child.

As per the available information on the case of a sexual offence on a teen girl in Saint Catherine, the alleged victim was reported missing to the police department by her parents. The missing report was filed early this year in the month of January 2024. Later, it was known that the teenage girl ran away from home, and the allegation went to the accused bus conductor, who captured the victim.

Reportedly, the man was accused after the missing teen girl was found in the company of the bus conductor. Subsequently, the case was registered against Heron Byfield, and he was taken into police custody for the offence of sexual assault on the teenager. The case was taken over by the Centre for Investigation of Sexual Offences and Child Abuse and the assigned officers took charge in the matter.

After getting laid with the charges of sexual offence, the accused was scheduled for the appearance in the parish court of Saint Catherine to face trial. On Wednesday, during the final verdict, the side of the accused raised arguments on the credibility of available details. The lawyer of the accused pointed out that it was clear that the alleged offence was committed before or after the teenager reached the age of sixteen.

The judge of the Saint Catherine parish court heard the argument from both sides, after which the final statement was passed in the sexual offence case. As the complainant side had no firm evidence against the accused man, the suspected man was released from all charges and marked innocent. The suspect maintained his innocence constantly throughout the trails.