JC boy’s liver ‘nicked’ after being robbed, stabbed at Champs
ISSA ‘empathises’ with family; JCF’s ground commander says event was largely ‘incident-free’
Published:Thursday | March 28, 2024 | 12:12 AM
A 17-YEAR-OLD student of Jamaica College (JC) was left hospitalised after criminals robbed him of his cell phone and stabbed him outside the gates of the National Stadium in Kingston on Friday, where the ISSA/GraceKennedy Boys and Girls’ Athletics Championships was underway.
The boy, a lower sixth-form student, had reportedly left the stadium and was outside the gate awaiting pick up from his mother when a group of men approached him.
He was robbed of the device and the wound inflicted before the group of approximately five men fled.
The incident occurred shortly after 7 p.m. across from The Lofts apartment complex.
His mother and sister, who reportedly witnessed the tail-end of the incident, bolted to his assistance, rushing him to Andrews Memorial Hospital in St Andrew.
Doctors confirmed to his mother, who spoke with The Gleaner but asked not to be identified, that his liver was “nicked”.
However, she said that the injury is not life-threatening and the organ is expected to heal over time.
A tracker on the phone placed the device at a premises in Grants Pen, St Andrew. It has subsequently been retrieved.
She has criticised the police and the event’s organisers for a lack of significant security presence.
The mother argued that the security of students was not sufficiently covered.
She said a security guard who was on duty and another man held on to one of the men but noted that he was subsequently let go.
The mother said she did not see any lawman to seek assistance.
“We’re breaking the one way with my hazard lights on shouting my son was stabbed and nobody looked. I would never send back my son to Champs, because it is not secured,” the woman said.
“For an event like that where the majority of the persons attending are not adults, they should beef up security. I am not sure if they were just concentrating on the inside, but what about the persons who don’t get any parking on the inside and have to park on the outside and walk in? It is unacceptable,” she said.
The Gleaner has learnt that ISSA, the Inter-Secondary Schools Sports Association, spent close to $20 million on security for this year’s staging of the athletics championship.
This was to reportedly cover the security of the event and its environs in the city.
ISSA President Keith Wellington said on Wednesday that the police, on the days of the event, covered traffic lights and “troubled spots” around the stadium.
He said, where it is reported that the incident occurred, it is unlikely that lawmen were positioned there.
Wellington said, however, there would be some level of patrol taking place along Arthur Wint Drive and Mountain View Avenue.
“We know these things happen, and they happen every day of the week and not just when Champs is in play. But I would suspect that there was some level of coverage. It is just unfortunate that maybe the time that that took place there was no patrol in the area.
“But, in terms of arrangements that we make with the police, we are confident that they are adequate. Whether or not the police do what is expected of them, now that is a different issue,” said Wellington.
He said the incident is “regrettable” and noted that ISSA “empathises” with the boy and his family.
The Jamaica Constabulary Force’s (JCF’s) ground commander for the event, Senior Superintendent (SSP) Michael Bailey, said he was unaware of the incident.
He said the event, for the most part, went incident-free, and that there was no report of robbery.
However, he said three children had been reported missing, one of whom has since been located.
“From the point of view of the organisers, the private security, and the police, what was in place is what was agreed and all parties were satisfied that adequate police presence was on the ground to deal with any eventuality,” the SSP said.