Logger remanded for death of 4 yr. old stepson

Oct 18, 2019 News

A 21-year-old logger was yesterday remanded to prison after he was slapped with a murder charge in relation to the death of his four-year-old step-son.

Remanded Joseph James

Joseph James was not required to plead to the indictable offence which alleged that on October 7, last, at Silver Hill Linden/Soesdyke Highway; he murdered Alex Prince in the course and furtherance of a rape.
At the time that the charge was read to him, James was arraigned in the Georgetown Magistrates’ Court before Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan. The defendant was ordered to make his next court appearance on October 23, 2019 at the Linden Magistrate Court.
Reports had indicated that, last week the boy was found naked lying in a pool of blood. On the day in question Prince was reportedly left in the care of his step-father.
Further reports indicated that James claimed that he went to the shop leaving the child home alone. He later returned and found the child unconscious. The child was rushed to the Diamond Diagnostic Center where he was pronounced dead on arrival.
The child’s mother Stacy Goodridge and James had been arrested by the police following the death of Prince. This was after a post-mortem examination (PME) revealed that the child had been sodomised and struck to his head.
The PME, which was conducted by the government’s chief pathologist, Dr. Nehaul Singh, revealed that the child had died as a result of blunt force trauma to the head. On Friday morning last, the findings were handed over to the police and the boy’s parents were subsequently arrested.
Residents within the village of Yarrowkabra, on the Soesdyke/Linden highway have since come forward with more reports implicating James in other sexual offences with children.