December 2009

A 51-year-old man has been accused of having sex with a girl of nine.

Michael Darville, 51, was not required to enter a plea to the charge of unlawful sexual intercourse when he appeared before Magistrate Derence Rolle-Davis yesterday.

Prosecutors allege that Darville had sexual contact with the child in November. Darville has been granted $10,000 bail, pending the conclusion of a preliminary inquiry into the charge.

A UN representative has said relying on foreign aid to achieve the Millennium Development Goals did a disservice to Africa, and has called on African governments to find alternative funding sources and clean up their act.

African countries need to find alternative sources to money to finance their national budgets, rather than rely on overseas aid, according to an official from the UN Millennium Campaign.

Not even the threat of rain could prevent the crowd from coming out to enjoy themselves at yet another staging of Teensplash, held at the James Bond Beach on Saturday, which had an added bonus -- Vybz Kartel and Mavado sharing the same stage following the official end to their feud.

After hitting the stage, both artistes took the opportunity to remind their fans that they were no longer at loggerheads.

ONLY 15 of the more than 50 children who went missing between November and December have returned home, the police reported yesterday.

According to the Constabulary Communication Network (CCN) -- the police communication arm -- several of the children who went missing over the two-month period are repeat offenders.