Briefs

Three HEART courses go online in CARICOM initiative

The HEART/NSTA Trust has digitised three level two courses under a CARICOM-led pilot to standardise technical and vocational education and training (TVET) across member states.

Jamaica, alongside Grenada, Barbados and Trinidad and Tobago, took part in the initiative. The programmes, uploaded to the agency’s Moodle platform, have been available for delivery since May 18 across designated HEART/NSTA Trust institutions.

They include waxing technology level two at the HEART College of Beauty Services, tiling level two at the HEART College of Construction Services, and baker and cake technology level two at the HEART College of Hospitality Services. 

By March 2027, the agency plans to digitise at least 10 additional programmes.

Speaking at the closing summit of the CARICOM TVET Digitalisation Project last week at The Jamaica Pegasus hotel in New Kingston, the HEART Trust’s managing director, Dr Taneisha Ingleton, underscored the urgency of the effort.

“As of July 2025, the Statistical Institute of Jamaica’s labour force data shows that approximately 25.5 per cent of Jamaica’s youth are not in employment, education or training. For HEART/NSTA Trust, that figure carries the weight of institutional responsibility. It is a mandate to expand access, strengthen flexibility and ensure that pathways to skills and certification reach those who need them most,” she stated.

Ingleton added that the initiative broadens access through asynchronous delivery, enhancing certification while improving flexibility, participation, completion rates and regional reach, as well as supporting self-paced learning.

Rayharna Wright, vice-chair of HEART’s board, welcomed the shift, noting that digital delivery would extend the system’s reach.

“It allows us to extend learning opportunities beyond traditional physical limitations. It creates conditions for greater continuity, stronger learner support systems, enhanced quality assurance and more consistent delivery standards across institutions,” she said.

Soldier arrested following seizure of gun in Glengoffe, St Catherine

Detectives assigned to the St Catherine South Police Division have arrested a member of the Jamaica Defence Force on reasonable suspicion of illegal possession of a firearm.

The police report that on Thursday, acting on intelligence, a search was conducted at a premises in Zion Hill, Glengoffe, St Catherine.

According to the police, a Glock P80 pistol with no visible markings, along with a magazine containing five rounds of ammunition, was seized.

The private was taken into custody following the seizure of the loaded weapon.

The police, with the cooperation of the army’s Special Investigative Unit, are conducting investigations into the matter.

The soldier was placed in police custody at the Portmore lock-up in St Catherine.

His name is being withheld pending further investigations.

Man charged after businessman killed, visitor injured in Negril

A 21-year-old man has been charged in connection with a shooting and robbery at a business establishment in Negril, Westmoreland, that left one man dead and another injured.

Joshua Vaz, otherwise known as ‘Josh’, of Negril, was charged on Friday with murder, wounding with intent, robbery with aggravation, and using a firearm to commit a felony.

Killed was 35-year-old Nashon McGibbon, otherwise known as ‘Bubbanash’, a businessman of Tigress Lane, Negril, Westmoreland.

According to reports from the Savanna-la-Mar Criminal Investigation Branch, at approximately 8:40 p.m. on Friday, May 22, McGibbon was at his place of business when he was allegedly attacked by Vaz and another accomplice. 

The men reportedly opened fire, hitting him multiple times.

The police say McGibbon allegedly attempted to flee but was pursued by the assailants, who continued shooting at him. 

Following the attack, the men reportedly robbed him of a bag containing a laptop and an undetermined sum of money.

During the incident, another man, who was a visitor to the island, was shot in the left shoulder.

The police were alerted, and both injured men were assisted to hospital, where McGibbon was pronounced dead.

Vaz was arrested during a police operation in Whitehall, Negril, on Tuesday, May 26. 

He was formally charged on Friday, June 5, after he was positively identified.

His court date is being finalised.