Latest Sexual Assault, Murder Rocks Grenada

An anesthesiologist from Atlanta, 39-year-old Jessica Colker, was raped and murdered over the weekend while on vacation in Grenada with her husband. The incident has provoked angry reactions on social media and outrage in Grenada, along with calls for widespread changes in cultural attitudes as well as policing and legal reform.

Martin Benjamin, who was recently released from prison, has reportedly admitted the crime.

Records show rising incidences of rape and theft in Grenada but activists say that true number of assaults is much higher than suggested by official records because of an entrenched culture of tolerance for sexual violence, which leads many cases to go unreported, and the social stigma which victims suffer.

Though officials stress that such cases are infrequent and that thousands of visitors travel through Grenada every year, such incidents are bound to impact the country’s tourism industry if not dealt with effectively.

Colker murder follows the death of another visitor to Grenada, Canadian doctor Limea Veinotte, 26, who was found dead and buried in a makeshift grave just days before Christmas.

Akim Frank, who has a record for burglary, causing harm, stealing and wounding, turned himself in to police for the crime. It is reported that Veinotte was hit by a car that Frank was driving. He was charged with non-capital murder, because it was not intentional.

Source: Caribbean News Now