Councillor Scean Barnswell heaped with praise at municipal meeting for heroic rescue of missing child

Mayor of May Pen, Joel Williams, today praised the Councillor for the Hayes division, Scean Barnswell, for what he described as a tremendous act of goodwill in rescuing a six-year-old girl who was reportedly abducted from the St Thomas More Preparatory School on Tuesday.

The alleged abductor was intercepted and confronted by Barnswell along the Bustamante Highway in the parish.

The man remains in police custody.

Barnswell’s wife, acting with instinctive courage, reportedly took the frightened child and secured her in their family vehicle.

The atmosphere inside Thursday’s sitting of the Clarendon Municipal Corporation shifted the moment Barnswell entered the chamber.

He walked in to resounding applause, followed by heartfelt commendations from Williams and fellow councillors for the heroism displayed by him and his wife.

"Councillor Barnswell, you and your wife's stern vision, quick thinking, and actions are to be commended," said Williams.

“Had it not been for your braveness, and your wife's quick thinking, today, the parish of Clarendon, and Jamaica by extension, could have been in mourning. On behalf of all of us, I want to say a big thank you to you and your wife for a job well done,” Williams said, his voice thick with emotion.

“You both have saved our future and prevented potential irreversible damage. When I listened to your wife in that voicenote, tears came to my eyes,” he continued, referencing the now-viral audio in which Mrs Barnswell recounts the tense moments leading up to the child’s rescue.

In that chilling voicenote, Mrs Barnswell shared that the child told her, “He's taking me away,” and, “He took me through the bushes so I wouldn't be seen.”

She said she began praying over the little girl as they waited anxiously for the police to arrive.

The emotional weight of the ordeal, he said, reverberates deeply throughout the community, pointing out that the child’s mother serves as pastor of the St James Methodist Church in May Pen.

“I hope the security forces will give justice where justice is concerned, because that could have been a child we're all mourning for. Thank you very much again, Councillor,” Williams concluded.

- Olivia Brown

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.