The Ministry of Education, Skills, Youth and Information says it’s “outraged and deeply saddened”, by the brutal rape and murder of nine year-old Kelsey Ferrigon in Spanish Town, St Catherine on Friday.

The young girl’s partially nude body was found stuffed upside down inside a barrel at Job Lane in the parish.

“This heinous act, committed during Child Month, a time when we are called to reflect on, uplift, and protect the nation’s children, has shaken our conscience and the heart of the Jamaican people. We extend heartfelt condolences to the grieving family, friends, and school community,” the ministry said Saturday in a statement.

It added that, “There is no justification for such a deliberate, vile and heartless act. Every child in Jamaica has the right to grow up safely, surrounded by love and opportunity. This tragedy is a crime against all children, our national values and our collective future”.

The education ministry said it was firmly in support of the $2 million reward offered by the Ministry of National Security for information leading to the arrest and charge of those responsible.

“We urge anyone with information to come forward,” it said.

Meanwhile, the ministry, through its regional teams and the Child Protection and Family Services Agency, will be providing grief counselling and psychosocial support during what it said is this devastating time.

The police have named Giovanni Ellis, otherwise called ‘Coolie Man’ as a person of interest in the matter. They have asked him to report immediately at the Spanish Town police station.