Former Family Court Director to Lead Investigation into Deadly Fire

As we said, there are many unanswered questions, but a criminal as well as an independent investigation are currently underway to determine if there is negligence in the death of the three minors. Executive Director of the National Committee for Families and Children, Margaret Nicholas, who is also former Director of the Family Court and has assisted in shaping the Juvenile Justice System, has been brought in with assistance from UNICEF to probe into what transpired on that tragic Saturday afternoon at the facility.

Judith Alpuche, C.E.O., Ministry of Human Development, Social Transformation & Poverty Alleviation

Judith Alpuche

“We have no intentions of sweeping anything under the rug. We need to fully understand what happened, why this tragedy occurred; what led to it. What we have is a sketch of—as she has sketched out—a sequence of events. But what we fully intend to do is a full investigation of the matter because what we need to be able to deal with this matter is the clear unvarnished truth of what happened. In this regard, we have asked Miss Margaret Nicholas to lead an independent investigation of this matter. And the reason why we have asked her is because we believe she has the necessary skills and she has one characteristic which is absolutely invaluable in this. She will call it like she sees it. That is her reputation. 

She has experience in running a facility for this population and so we are pleased that she will assist us to look at this entire situation soberly and objectively because this is the only way we can deal with this matter. We also have the support of UNICEF who will provide oversight for this investigation. They have agreed to accompany the entire process because we need—as I said—objectivity. We need clarity on what has happened. And so that is really the way we are seeking to go forward.”