Body of 5-y-o autistic boy found in pit

Little Jahair was nicknamed 'Happy' by his father, Oliver Spencer, because of his captivating smile.

The five-year-old, non-verbal, autistic boy was playful and full of life. But, on Tuesday evening, sometime after 6 p.m., Spencer said he realised that the youngster was nowhere to be found. He had been playing at the back of the yard with his six-year-old brother who is also autistic. Jahair's body was found early yesterday morning, floating in a manhole at the premises where he resided on Maple Leaf Avenue in Kingston 11.

The grief was visible when Spencer spoke with THE STAR yesterday. He said he and the police spent most of Tuesday night searching for Jahair, but it didn't cross their minds to look inside the manhole.

"Mi and the police dem search the whole yard and everything. Because the covers were on the manhole, we never think about searching in there. This morning (Wednesday) mi start look again and mi just decide to lif' up the manhole cover and mi see mi son in there. Mi take out mi baby and start give him CPR but it never work. Mi put on clothes and wrap him up in a sheet. Mi try but him did dead," he said.

Reports from the Half-Way Tree police are that a missing person report was filed when Jahair could not be found at his home between 5 p.m. and 8 p.m on Tuesday. During a search on Wednesday, his body was found about 6:48 a.m. in a manhole at the rear of the premises. The police were alerted and his body was removed to the morgue

Jahair and his sibling are enrolled at St Mary Early Childhood Developmental Centre. Spencer said that although he worked at nights, he tried his best to attend to their every need. He said he has been taking care of the children by himself for the past two years after the court granted him full custody.

"Mi and their mother was together for nine years but she leave and we went to court. She said she didn't want custody of them and I didn't want them to go to a children's home. So I take both of them. I work at bakery in the nights and my father look after them. Is two years now mi a take care of the babies by myself. Mi work at nights and come home and take them go school. Mi take care of my two autistic pickney dem myself. Mi love mi children dem, eno," he said as his voice trembled.

As he looked at the manhole in which Jahair's body was found, he said he remained puzzled as to why the pit was covered. He said he only decided to search the hole because a month ago, his older son had removed the cover from another manhole.

"Last month, I couldn't find both of my phones and his bigger brother had taken them and open the manhole cover throw them down there and cover it back. Mi still a wonder how the manhole close back. I really don't know what happened, because the reason we never look in there is because the cover was on it," he said.