Police chief admits ‘gross negligence’ in CISOCA records found at abandoned building

Commissioner of Police Dr Kevin Blake has admitted to "gross negligence" in the force's mishandling of sensitive records belonging to the law enforcement body that investigates sexual and child abuse.

In a statement on Friday, the Jamaica Constabulary Force said the commissioner was addressing "an issue that could have easily been swept under the rug".

Blake accepted responsibility for the failure, which resulted in sensitive case files belonging to the Centre for the Investigation of Sexual Offences and Child Abuse (CISOCA) being left exposed in an abandoned building on Ruthven Road in St Andrew.

“This, colleagues, cannot be described as anything less than gross negligence on our part as an organization, especially at a time like now when our transformation is at such an advanced stage and moving at such a rapid pace,” said Blake.

"As the person with command responsibility over the JCF, I apologize not only to the clients of CISOCA, but also to Jamaica."

The documents, including police station diaries containing information on cases involving hundreds, possibly thousands, of children, were discovered by The Gleaner earlier this month, scattered and soiled inside the facility. The front cover of one of the station diaries showed that it was used to collect data on child offences from 2015 to 2017. Another diary indicated that data was collected from 2013 to 2014.

The commissioner explained that the CISOCA office had been relocated in 2024 to a new facility at Upper Lady Musgrave Road in St Andrew, but during the transition, some records that could not be accommodated at the new site were placed in temporary storage at the old building. He said the building was vandalised.

The revelation of the exposure sparked outrage and legal concerns, particularly in light of Jamaica’s Data Protection Act, which mandates strict handling and safeguarding of sensitive information. Attorney-at-law Chukwuemeka Cameron described the development as "shocking" and emphasised that the exposure represents a "worst-case scenario."

“This is where it sounds like you have sensitive information about offences that have been committed against children. This sort of information is kept confidential. In a court case, you don’t mention the name of a child because even the fact that there was an allegation of an offence could blight a child’s future,” Cameron said.

The attorney further explained that all government agencies, including the JCF, are required to appoint data-protection officers and implement strict data-retention policies.

Blake, however, said steps will be taken to prevent a recurrence of such negligence. He acknowledged the potential damage to public trust and the integrity of the force, stressing the need for immediate corrective action.

“Instances of blunders like these are what give fuel to the false narratives and open the floodgate of unfair character slandering of the JCF, by describing us as lacking common sense, and the understanding of our obligations and responsibilities,” Blake stated.

In a direct apology to the affected individuals and the nation, the Commissioner took personal responsibility for the oversight. “For that,

Superintendent Kerry-Ann Bailey, who took over leadership of CISOCA in October last year, distanced herself from the circumstances surrounding the mishandled records. She explained that she was working with what was handed over to her at the new facility and could not account for decisions made before her tenure.

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