A shocking development in the high-profile case of a slain Dominican teenager has seen a second law enforcement officer hit with murder charges in the death of 16-year-old Jabaya Paul, a native of Portsmouth.
The accused officer, who also hails from Portsmouth, was taken into custody last week at Douglas-Charles Airport immediately upon his arrival back in Dominica. He is scheduled to make his first court appearance on Friday morning, where a judge will formally present the murder charge against him and outline the legal next steps for his case.
This latest court action comes just days after authorities charged a first police officer with ties to Paul’s killing, marking a rapid series of breakthroughs in an investigation that has gripped the small Caribbean nation. Paul’s case first drew public attention when she was reported missing by her family several weeks ago. After an extensive search operation across northern Dominica, search teams located her remains in the Capuchin region of the island, launching the homicide investigation that has now implicated two serving police officers.