Alleged human traffickers walk free
ST JAMES, Jamaica — The St James Circuit Court decided not to offer any evidence in the case of three St James residents accused of coercing two females into indecent acts five years ago due to the complainant’s reluctance to appear in court.
Lonie Ricketts, Lisa-Shay White, and Jerome Murray, all of St James addresses, were charged with human trafficking, living off the earnings of prostitution and facilitating the trafficking of a person.
The case was heard in the St James Circuit Court on Thursday before High Court Justice Bertram Morrison.
Attorney-at-law Michael Hemmings, who was representing the trio, raised concerns regarding the witness [complainant] being unavailable on multiple occasions.
The investigating officer, who was present in court, confirmed that the witness was reluctant to appear in court to give evidence.
Due to the inability to secure the witness, the Crown was unable to prosecute the matter against the three defendants.
The three defendants pleaded not guilty to the charges, the prosecution offered no evidence, and the judge told them that they were free to go.
In the case of the other female who had reportedly escaped, no statement was obtained from her. As a result, her account of the event was not documented or considered in the investigation, excluding her from the case.
The incident occurred on April 26, 2019, according to the prosecution’s case file.
The two females were allegedly pursued by the two accused women while walking along a road in St James.
One escaped, but the other was captured and was reportedly forcibly driven away in a car.
The family of the captured female alerted authorities. They also contacted the other female, who had managed to flee, requesting her assistance in finding the missing woman.
Murray was reportedly discovered by police on May 4 at Ricketts’ home in New Ramble and taken to the police station. When she arrived, she reportedly informed the police that she knew where the missing female was. Contact was made and the missing girl was discovered in Cambridge.
