SHE WAS 16 YEARS OLD. HER BODY WAS HIDDEN FOR NEARLY 3 WEEKS — NOW OFFICERS ARE CHARGED IN THE CASE. THE MURDER OF JERBIAH PAUL Portsmouth, Dominica — July 24, 2026 Jerbiah Paul was only 16 years old when she told her mother she was going “down the road” to visit a friend. She never came home. Jerbiah, who lived in Georgetown, Portsmouth, was last seen at home on the evening of July 24 wearing a blue T-shirt. The following day, her mother reported her missing. What began as a desperate search for a teenage girl would eventually become a murder investigation involving multiple arrests — including several people who had worn the very badge meant to represent law and protection. Emergency personnel and community members searched for Jerbiah, with assistance eventually coming from the Barbados-based Regional Security System. But while Jerbiah's family was searching for her, investigators say an elaborate effort was underway to make people believe the missing teenager was still alive. Fake social media accounts were reportedly created to impersonate Jerbiah. Messages were sent in her name, creating the appearance that she had simply run away. She hadn't. On August 12 — nearly 3 weeks after Jerbiah disappeared — severely decomposed remains believed to be hers were discovered hidden near a steep precipice in the northern community of Capuchin. An autopsy was conducted at the Dominica-China Friendship Hospital. DNA samples were also sent overseas for processing. Authorities have not publicly released Jerbiah's exact cause of death, and because of the condition of her remains, specific forensic findings have remained closely guarded. The prosecution's case maintains that Jerbiah was intercepted on the night she disappeared, killed and her body thrown over the precipice. Then came the arrests. Former police officer Jean-Luc Langlais, 23, was charged with Jerbiah's murder. Police officer Joshua Hamlet was arrested at Douglas Charles Airport after returning to Dominica and was also charged with murder. Bense police constable Patrick Bethelmie Jr., 23, was charged with perverting the course of justice and possession of ammunition without a valid license. His girlfriend, Jolie-Ana Naomi James of Portsmouth, was charged with the same offenses. Another police officer was also arrested and charged with perverting the course of justice, while an adult woman from Marigot was arrested on suspicion of attempting to pervert the course of justice. Altogether, six people have been arrested or remanded during the investigation, including four active or former police officers. The murder charges against Langlais and Hamlet place two law-enforcement figures directly at the center of the case, while other arrests focus on what authorities say happened during efforts to interfere with the investigation. Jerbiah's exact motive for being targeted has NOT been publicly established. There has been widespread speculation that the teenager may have known something about illegal activity involving law enforcement, but no evidence establishing that theory as the motive has been publicly released. What investigators have focused on is the effort after her disappearance to make it appear that she was still alive. Police Chief Lincoln Corbette and National Security Minister Rayburn Blackmoore publicly condemned the circumstances surrounding the case and expressed condolences to Jerbiah's family, with authorities promising that no stone would be left unturned regardless of whether those implicated carried a badge. The defendants charged with murder were remanded to Dominica State Prison as the case moved toward High Court proceedings. A 16-year-old girl left home telling her mother she was going down the road. For nearly 3 weeks, her family searched for her while messages appearing to come from Jerbiah reportedly helped create the illusion that she was still alive. Then her remains were discovered hidden below a precipice. #true #georgetown #caribbean #portsmouth #dominica - @lil.c950