Boos was originally arrested and charged by local authorities in for possession of pornographic literature. The court had ordered the destruction of a large collection ofr video tapes, photographs and magazines some of which featured the popular zoo keeper in various sexual positions with a number of young women. Since then U. It is being alleged that he not only swapped such material with foreign connections as far as Thailand, the United Kingdom and Germany but that he had personally engaged in sex acts with young children.
On Tuesday Attorney General Ramesh Lawrence Maharaj announced the setting up of a special unit within the police service to investigate several cases of missing children that might have been linked to an alleged pornography ring. The Boos incident has also put the spotlight on teenage prostitution, a phenomenon that has been described as one of the fastest growing sub-sectors of the local sex trade. An IPS investigation proved that girls as young as 14 are being used by modeling agencies, escort services and regular pimps to service the needs of a clientele seemingly undeterred by the threat of criminal conviction.
In Trinidad and Tobago, one can be charged with rape for having intercourse with children younger than 16 years old. If the child is under 14 years of age, the accused is not entitled to plead that it was consensual sex. Roman Catholic priest and social activist Father Clyde Harvey believes that the incidence of poverty has something to do with the problem. One source knowledgeable of the industry says part of the attraction of young girls is the fact that most of them meet the needs of their cusotmers for a fraction of what the older heads require.
Some of them will take 20 dollars 3. The thriving escort services, some of which are advertised in the local newspapers, have a minimum charge of 50 U.
Other services provide customers with teenage prostitutes at a considerable lower price. The clientele comprises a high number of male visitors to the country, but the mainstay of the business remains the local community. The girls involved are often put at risk of abuse and of contracting sexual transmitted diseases. Dr Bishram Mahabir, who heads a state-run testing and counselling centre for sexually transmitted diseases STDs cites statistics which show that in , at his clinic alone, there were more than gonorrhoea sufferers among the age group, 59 with syphilis six HIV positive patients.
