Transport Minister to address concerns about rideshare services

By Nakinskie Robinson    

 

Transport Minister Daryl Vaz is expected to address concerns about the regulation of rideshare taxi services in Jamaica, on Tuesday afternoon.

 

This comes after Deputy Commissioner of Police in charge of crime, Fitz Bailey, revealed that investigators encountered challenges in their probe of the disappearance of primary school teacher, Danielle Anglin.

 

The 29-year-old woman was last seen on May 13 when she left home in Hellshire, St. Catherine for work at St. Peter Claver Primary School in St. Andrew in an inDrive taxi.

 

DCP Bailey said the police will be seeking to have a structure in place for rideshare taxi services locally. 

 

"It is our information that the suspect operates one of those rideshare service. One of the challenges that we have faced with as investigators is, we do not have any local based association or organisation that we can contact when investigating cases involving these type of services. And it is something that I will be taking up with a relevant authority to ensure that more structure is put in place to treat with these type of association or organisation," he said in an update Monday.     

 

Meanwhile, efforts to contact National Security Minister Dr. Horace Chang regarding whether the national sex offender registry will be made public and accessible to all, were futile.

 

The issue has again been raised after it was revealed that the suspect taken into custody in relation to Ms. Anglin's disappearance is a convicted sex offender in Jamaica and Antigua & Barbuda.

 

In 2021, then State Minister in the Ministry of Education, Youth, and Information, Robert Morgan, had indicated that the matter would be considered.

 

The registry was established in October 2009, along with the passage of the Sexual Offences Act.

 

It only has records for felons who are tried and convicted for sex crimes in Jamaica.

 

The database is managed by the Department of Correctional Services and is not open to public scrutiny, with all information held in confidence.