Police investigate death of a three-month-old in Trelawny

WESTERN BUREAU:

The Trelawny police have commenced an investigation into the circumstances surrounding last Thursday’s death of a three-month-old baby boy at his home in Troy district, in Trelawny.

The dead child, who has been identified as Ian ‘Omari’ Scott, has had tongues wagging in the rural community as it has been rumoured that his death is linked to an activity carried out inside the house to prevent evil spirits from entering the house.

According to the Trelawny police, they received a report that last Thursday, the child was at home with its mother and other family members, when the mother left him lying on a bed and went to the bathroom. Upon her return, the mother noticed that the child was lying motionless and she raised an alarm.

Other family members rushed to the mother’s assistance and following their failed efforts to revive the child, they summoned the police, who visited the home and found the child, who appeared to be lifeless.

With the assistance of the police, the child was transported to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead. The body was moved to a morgue, where a post-mortem examination is expected to be done to determine the cause of his death.

The police stated that while they have no reason to suspect foul play, they have been hearing rumours in the community that the parents had engaged in an activity that could have harmed the child, hence their decision to conduct a full investigation, including requesting an autopsy report.

WAITING ON AUTOPSY

“We have heard rumours and allegations, but for now, we cannot point any fingers. We will just have to wait on the autopsy report then we will know where to take our investigation from there,” a police officer told The Gleaner.

“So far, we have learned from the family that the child was not diagnosed with any kind of sickness and that the mother only left him alone for a few minutes, so his death cannot be treated as just natural, nor can it be treated as suspicious, until after a post-mortem examination,” the policeman added.

Arlene Hyman, the child’s distraught mother, told The Gleaner that she was puzzled by the death of her child as prior to her leaving him in the house and going to the bathroom, he appeared okay.

“I don’t know what fi seh happen to mi baby, all mi do is just lef him fi few minutes and go a bathroom, and wen mi come back mi si him stiff out pon the bed,” the woman said. “Same time mi call mi sister them, and wen them come wi realise seh the baby dead.”

Since the child’s death, rumours have been circulating that the mother had lit incense in the room, which they say was to keep ghost out of the house and away from the baby. They are of the view that the incense suffocated the child.

According to the residents, a relative of the child’s mother died recently and was buried in the yard, and it was that situation which sparked the decision to burn incense in the house, a claim the grieving family has flatly rejected.