Police in Jamaica Rescue 23 Children from Religious Compound in Montego Bay

KINGSTON, Jamaica – The police have launched an investigation following the removal of 23 children from a religious compound in Montego Bay on Wednesday. 

(Photo credit – Jamaica Observer)The children, ages one to 17 years, along with 15 adults, were taken into custody during a multi-agency operation at the Bayith Yahweh religious compound.

According to Commanding Officer for the Area One police in the western parish of St. James, Assistant Commissioner Clifford Chambers, the children were removed from the premises under suspicions of neglect and child abuse.

“This is coming out of intelligence and information provided that the children are being deprived of formal education from institutions that are properly registered. They are also not being immunized as required by law. They are also being housed in a communal living that is not conducive to the wellbeing of children,”  Chambers told the Jamaica Observer on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, the Child Protection and Family Services Agency (CPFSA) on Thursday said the children are to undergo medical examination and further questioning.

This is not the first time that the Jamaican authorities have been forced to remove children from the facility.

In 2019, the Bayith’s chief apostle Omar Thompson, accused the authorities of traumatizing  three children after they were taken from the property and handed over to their mother.