About 126 women and girls murdered annually

The police have disclosed that since 2011 an average 126 women and girls have been murdered annually in Jamaica.

Deputy Commissioner of Police in charge of crime, Fitz Bailey, said on Monday that the highest number of  murders took place in 2017 when 160 females were killed.

DCP Bailey said many were killed by people close to them.

Similarly, he said many women and girls are raped by persons close to them.

Khanice Jackison

Concerning a recent killing, DCP Bailey said  investigators continue to gather evidence against the suspect who was taken into custody for the death of  20 year-old Khanice Jackson in Portmore, St Catherine.

Miss Jackson's body was found last Friday morning in bushes off  the Dyke Road in Portmore, St. Catherine.

Investigators theorise that she was strangled.

Miss Jackson's murder has sparked public outrage and calls for an end to violence against women.

Eunice Chambers, the mother of  Miss Jackson, explained that the suspect, who worked in the same vicinity as her daughter, had been giving her rides since February.

She said he continued to take her to work even after she rejected his advances.