KINGSTON, Jamaica— A father who is accused of incest, sexual touching and indecent assault relating to his pre-teen daughter was taken into custody by the police.

 The suspect is accused of several complaints that date back to December 2020.

He is also accused of threatening to kill the child if she told anyone.

The matter was reported to the police after the child told her mother.

Just this week, prosecutors described as a “public health emergency” the influx of sexual offence cases with young females as victims presenting before the island's courts, particularly rural circuits.

Perpetrators range from fathers, boyfriends, family friends, and relatives to community residents including taxi and bus drivers. Children who become victims are often those left unsupervised for extended periods, those whose parents lack the necessary skills, and who are from impoverished backgrounds.

St Thomas, St Mary, St Catherine, and Westmoreland, the Jamaica Observer was told, are the parishes with the most red flags.

In figures shared with the newspaper, of the 98 matters before the courts for the month of February alone, 57 cases were sexual offences and 16 were instances of sex with a person under 16 years of age.