Port Antonio foetus discovery, custody death probe, oil tops US$100

Police in Portland are investigating after the remains of a female foetus were discovered in bushes in Port Antonio on Wednesday. Officers reported that one hand and both feet appeared to have been bitten off. Early inquiries put the foetus at between six and seven months’ gestation.

Separately, the Independent Commission of Investigations has opened a probe into the death of Horace Williams, who took ill while held at the Duhaney Park Police Station in St. Andrew. Williams, of East Albion in St. Thomas, was taken into custody on July 2 in connection with a murder inquiry. He is said to have fallen ill on July 21 and was transported to the Kingston Public Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

On global markets, benchmark crude oil climbed above US$100 a barrel for the first time in two months. The jump followed claims by Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen that they had struck two Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea, raising fears the conflict could widen.

In sport, Jamaica’s Reggae Girlz will field a young squad at the Central American and Caribbean Games after several clubs and universities refused to release players for a tournament outside FIFA’s international window. Head coach Hubert Busby said the refusals left him leaning on emerging talent rather than established names. Busby will not attend the Games because of family commitments.

At midday currency trading, the US dollar sold for J$159.62, sterling for J$216.58, and the Canadian dollar for J$115.79.

Friday’s forecast calls for a mostly sunny, hazy morning, with isolated showers and thunderstorms expected in the afternoon over western parishes and some inland hills elsewhere.