Jersey police to focus on bricked-up youth hostel cellar » Communities » 24dash.com

Police searching seven sites at a Jersey youth hostel where the remains of a child were found said today they were focusing on a bricked-up cellar.

Detectives said a sniffer dog specially trained to locate human remains had identified a number of hotspots at the cellar within the Haut de la Garenne, a former children's home.

Officers were alerted to the site, which also used to be an orphanage, after a child abuse investigation was launched last November with allegations dating back to the 1960s.

Jersey's deputy chief police officer, Lenny Harper, could not say how long the cellar had been sealed.

It is understood that former children at the home were forced into solitary confinement and when asked if the cellar was used for this Mr Harper declined to comment.

"We are concentrating on a cellar that was at one stage bricked up," he said. "It is a very slow methodical process.

"We have had some positive indications from the dog but there could be a number of explanations.

"At this stage we just don't know if there are more bodies."

Mr Harper said that ten more alleged victims had come forward after the story appeared in the media.

Police were already in contact with 140 alleged victims and witnesses, including former employees at the home.

Mr Harper said the investigation was also looking at accusations that allegations of abuse were not properly investigated when children made complaints in the past but added they had not found any evidence of a Government cover-up.

"Part of the inquiry will be the fact that a lot of the victims tried to report their assaults but for some reason or another they were not dealt with as they should be," he said.

"We are looking at allegations that a number of agencies didn't deal with things as perhaps they should, we are looking at all the agencies.

"We've no evidence of a cover-up by any Jersey government."

Mr Harper did say that they have some names of missing children that they are looking in to, but would not comment on how many.

He said the main focus of the investigation centred on allegations in the 1970s and 1980s.

He confirmed that part of the human remains found on Saturday was a skull but warned it may not be possible to identify the child from it.

He said they did not expect to make any arrests in relation to the remains in the near future and they would continue to treat the investigation as a "major crime".

"The difficulties of trying to identify that (the skull) are immense," he said. "It's going to be looked at but we may never know."

Forensic teams at the site have expanded their search, which is expected to last two weeks, and put up two more investigation tents.

The child abuse investigation which police made public last November focused on the period Haut de la Garenne was used as a centre for children in care or who had behaviour problems.

Mr Harper said their investigation began when a number of former members of staff were arrested on suspicion of paedophile crimes.

He said the alleged child abuse involved historical allegations of sexual and physical abuse of children said to have occurred on premises run by the state or voluntary groups.

The allegations span a period from the 1960s up to the early years of this decade, although police said the bulk of them focused on the 1970s and 1980s.

The Haut de la Garenne closed as a children's home in 1986.

The Youth Hostel Association released a statement today stressing that the alleged incidents being investigated by police pre-date the building's use as a youth hostel by two decades.

The statement went on: "This is a deeply regrettable matter and we are doing all we can to assist the police in any way possible."

The youth hostel was opened in 2004.

The island's former health minister, Stuart Syvret, said he has spoken to former residents in the home who claim floggings and solitary confinement were used as punishments.

Senator Syvret also said he believed that years of abuse at care home across the island had been concealed and covered up.

Jersey's Chief Minister, Senator Frank Walker, today said Senator Syvret had "no evidence" for his claims and was a "disaffected member of Government".

"He first made these allegations in June and so far has produced no evidence," he said.

"We are concentrating all our resources on helping the police and that includes looking at any allegations of a cover-up.

"If anyone is found guilty they would be arrested and prosecuted in exactly the same way as the people who perpetrated these evil crimes."