MONTEGO BAY, St James — The female vendor caught peeing into a plastic container as she skilfully positioned herself and her voluminous skirt in the back of a van near Charles Gordon Market in St James will be punished within a few days.

“She is liable for prosecution based on her breaching of the regulations as stated in our Food Handling Regulations of 1998. Because of the breaches we have found, she is liable for prosecution and that will be done this week,” said medical officer of health for St James Dr Francine Phillips-Kelly.

She was providing an update to the media during a briefing held in the St James Municipal Corporation’s chambers on Tuesday.

“This vendor will not be able to continue… because based on the investigation, she would have breached our regulations, the food handling regulation, in several areas. So she will not be allowed to continue and actions will be taken accordingly,” Phillips-Kelly added.

Reporters were told that the woman, who was vending on the roadside at the time of the incident, sold a variety of ground provisions, along with oranges and pears.

“She claimed that she would not have been peeling any of her stuff,” Phillips-Kelly explained.

The woman, whose name has not been released as she has not yet been charged, met with representatives of the St James health services on Monday morning. The breaches she committed were discussed and she was advised of the potential penalties.

“She was apologetic and spoke about some illnesses that she had; she did some knee operation,” an individual with knowledge of Monday’s discussion told the Jamaica Observer.

“She was shown other means of what she could have done instead, to use the public restroom,” the source added.

The woman, who did not know she was being recorded, was seen transferring her urine into a smaller bottle and tucking into her pocket a scrap of cloth she had just used to clean herself. The incident occurred on Fustic Road in Montego Bay, not far from the heavily used Charles Gordon Market.

According to Montego Bay Mayor Councillor Richard Vernon, the woman once had a stall inside the market and it was located “very close to the bathroom area”. He said she sold her wares from inside the market for more than 10 years but in 2021 she did not renew her licence.

“Regardless of the reason that led to her doing what she did, she was operating within a space that could accommodate her activities that she carried out during the time,” said Vernon.

“What we try to do, as best as possible, is to facilitate the persons there. That is why we ensure that we have the right amenities there in the space and that there are bathrooms that are up to par so as to facilitate both vendors and customers utilising the market space,” he added.