KINGSTON, Jamaica — A St Elizabeth man who is charged with physically assaulting the mother of his son was remanded in custody when he appeared in the Kingston and St Andrew Parish Court on Tuesday.

Nemhard Holden is charged with assault occasioning bodily harm and unlawful entry after he reportedly broke into the Kingston home of his child’s mother on January 4, 2026, inflicting wounds to her right elbow and allegedly dragging her out of the house.

Holden also reportedly went to another residence and inflicted several chop wounds on another man’s arms and head.

The accused, who broke down in tears in court, claimed that the complainant’s family had been ganging up on him and suggested that the child was not his.

“Miss I’m from St Elizabeth, each time I come to visit my son, she make her family dem gang up on me miss. I didn’t mean to hurt her. I need to do a DNA test because she tell me it’s not my child. She giving away my child to the wrong man,” Holden said.

He also alleged that he was being mistreated at the Constant Spring police lockup and requested to be transferred to a court in St Elizabeth.

“Miss them a take disadvantage of me a Constant Spring. Please give me a court in St Elizabeth to go miss. Please mi a beg you miss,” he said as he pleaded with Parish Judge Ruth-Ann Robinson.

When questioned about whether he had a case in a court in St Elizabeth, Holden confirmed he did, in relation to malicious destruction of property.

“I was stress out through the hurricane miss and mi sister them a argue with me. It’s all because a me youth miss, because she a tell me say me a run dung jacket miss and mi know a my son miss. She make me a go through a lot with me one child. Just give me a bail miss,” he added.

The judge, however, informed Holden that she could not grant bail due to the absence of his attorney.

Holden is scheduled to return to court on March 19.

— Vanassa McKenzie