ST JOHN’S, Antigua (CMC) — A 20-year-old woman is due to appear in Antiguan court on Monday charged with the murder of nine-year-old Chantel Crump, as religious groups condemn the “senseless” killing of the student.

Angela Mejia, who was charged on Saturday night, will appear before a magistrate in the country, who is expected to remand her to prison given that the charge is an indictable one and the case must be tried in Antigua’s High Court.

While there has been widespread condemnation of the murder of the nine-year-old student, who was reported to have entered the vehicle of the accused on the day she was killed, the Antigua Christian Council (ACC) said it felt “compelled to address the heart-wrenching tragedy that …has befallen our beloved nation”.

“The senseless killing of Chantel Crump, along with the numerous unsolved murders and the heartache of countless missing persons, weighs heavily on our collective conscience. These acts of violence are not merely statistics, they represent lives cut short, families shattered and communities left in despair,” the ACC said in a message.

The ACC said that it stands united in condemning these “heinous acts” and called on the population “to engage in a period of reflection and penance”.

“It is time to review our commitment to the values of love, respect and compassion that are foundational to our communities,” the ACC said, adding “let us not be consumed by anger or fear, but rather let this moment serve as a catalyst for transformation”.

In a separate message, the Seventh-day Adventist Community said it is “pained” by the loss of Chantel and that it is “appalled and disgusted by the senseless and brutal abduction and murder of an innocent infant”.

“In some ways, this is a reflection of the level of perilous times to which we have sadly come,” it said, adding “as we leave the church buildings today and mingle in the various communities, we remember young Chantel and her grieving family”.

“We will offer prayers for the family and also for the nation. We will call upon God to intervene in the crime and to help our people to live godly lives,” said Dr Carson Greene, president of the South Leeward Conference of Seventh-day Adventists.