Lewin disagrees with the cultism theory of religious leaders, saying they are thinking "way out of the box". - File

Two Church leaders have cited occultism as a major factor behind the incidence of abduction, rape and ghastly murder sweeping sections of Jamaica.

Bishop Joseph Ade-Gold and Pastor Oswell Robert Raymond told The Gleaner that many sex crimes were linked to occultism.

Both clerics claim that the practices of cultic worshippers have motivated some Jamaicans to conduct morally reprehensible acts. They also said that the Church should partner with the police in spearheading a united front to offer clear guidance, particularly to impressionable youths.

"The types of crime we are seeing, with the mutilation of bodies, are signs of the cults. We know that this is a country that practises a lot of obeah, and because of that, there is no doubt, in my mind, that this is what causes this kind of behaviour."

Raymond also said cultism was shredding the moral fabric of Jamaican society.

"It is anti-Christianity. It has to do with a lot of things. For instance, that Emancipation Park statue is in no way a legacy for any prime minister or leader to have left behind. It causes all kinds of promiscuity.

"It is pornographic in itself and is raping the minds of young children. All these things are linked."

He dismissed social conditions in Jamaica as a factor fuelling sexual crimes.

Cultism in Jamaica

"What social problem would cause somebody to take a young girl, rape her, then kill her? It is deep-rooted evil - there is no question that it is evil and at the heart of cultism."

This, however, contradicted the views of Ade-Gold, who believes poverty contributes greatly to the growth of cultism in Jamaica.

"I believe that it is because of broken homes," he said. "Children that are destitute and feel unloved are prey for Satanists (members of a specific cult devoted to Satan)."

Ade-Gold, who was born in Nigeria, provided specific details to suggest that Satanic cult beliefs validated the raping and killing of young women and children.

"The kinds of killings that we're having now, especially with these missing children, have connections with cults. They (members of Satanic cults) drink blood and are interested in virgins."

Commenting on whether he had encountered cultism here, Ade-Gold said he had been visited by many people who had been part of a Satanic school supposedly situated in St Ann.

"I know three persons who have gone to that school and their parents brought them to me for prayer," he said. "They refused to disclose the location of the school. They only said it was in St Ann. All three had identical 'symptoms' - they all had cut themselves on the wrist."

However, Jamaica's police chief has poured cold water on the occultism theories.

"When things happen we try to find solutions, and many times we think way out of the box," Rear Admiral Hardley Lewin told journalists during a press conference at the Police Officers' Club in St Andrew on Tuesday.

Tackling crime

But Ade-Gold has suggested that the Church and constabulary have consultations geared towards tackling crime together.

"I think there has to be a combination of them - the secular and the Church. The secular has resources that the Church does not have, but then the Church will also have some resources that will be helpful to the secular," he said.