Four charged over alleged abuse of American boys at Treasure Beach private school

The St Elizabeth police have charged four men for allegedly abusing eight American children at a private boarding school for troubled teens in the parish. 

Last month, the Child Protection and Family Services Agency (CPFSA) disclosed that it removed the boys from the Atlantis Leadership Academy in Treasure Beach following an unannounced visit on February 8 during which "signs of abuse and neglect" were reportedly observed on the children. 

The accused men, who are all from St Elizabeth, have been charged with assault occasioning bodily harm, cruelty to a child and assault at common law.

They are thirty-nine-year-old Eddison Morris from Great Bay district, 51-year-old Courtney Wiggan and 33-year-old Carson Cox, both from Sandy Bank community and footballer Odane Maswell, 31, from Holland Village district, according to a police statement issued Saturday. 

A fifth person is in custody however his identity is being withheld pending further investigations.

The boys were aged 14 to 18. Representatives from the US Embassy in Kingston participated in the visit. 

Most of them remain in Jamaican custody. Their families have been mounting a campaign for their release. 

In a written statement last week, Dirk Harrison, the attorney for the academy and its founder Randall Cook, said child agency's assertion of abuse at the academy "amounts to a premature conclusion before the finalisation of the investigative process". 

Harrison said that seven weeks after the visit, the authorities were yet to seek academy or Cook for their response to these "very serious and disturbing allegations". 

He said Cook was eager to clear his name and that of his institution. 

Atlantis Leadership Academy is located in Treasure Beach, a seaside community on St Elizabeth's south coast. “We are an affordable, structured boarding academy serving young men who possess strong leadership skills, though they've taken some wrong turns in their lives,” the institution's website said.

American  business woman and media personality Paris Hilton said she was outraged and horrified by the allegations, following a visit to Treasure Beach on Wednesday.

"Hundreds of thousands of youth experience this horror today, and I am dedicated to eliminating child abuse and neglect in youth residential programmes,” said Hilton, who was in Jamaica to advocate and support the boys' return to the US. "These boys came into the world expecting love and nurturing but instead, have faced absolute terror."

Seven of the teens were placed in residential childcare facilities, while an 18-year-old, who aged out of the children's court jurisdiction, was returned to the United States in February.

The matter is scheduled to go back before the court on April 3.

Follow The Gleaner on X, formerly Twitter, and Instagram @JamaicaGleaner and on Facebook @GleanerJamaica. Send us a message on WhatsApp at 1-876-499-0169 or email us at onlinefeedback@gleanerjm.com or editors@gleanerjm.com