Family seeks answers after Canadian woman dies while visiting husband in Jamaica
The family of a Canadian woman is seeking answers after her trip to Jamaica to visit her husband on their wedding anniversary ended tragically.
Jaeda Pauline Whitehead, a 28-year-old school board employee from Toronto, Ontario, died in Shearer’s Heights in Portland Cottage, Clarendon on Saturday after a reported domestic dispute with her husband, a fisherman from the community.
She had arrived in the island two weeks prior to her death.
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Whitehead’s aunt, Evelyn Fox, told Canada’s Global News that her niece had gone to Jamaica to celebrate her one-year wedding anniversary with her husband. Whitehead was only supposed to be in Jamaica for two weeks but had extended her trip, the aunt said.
Fox, who described her niece as a “free spirit” and a “beautiful person”, said the family is shocked at the tragic turn of events.
“She was just somebody that you love to have around you,” Fox told Global News. “Very, very beautiful person, and very giving. So like, I guess we’re all in shock.”
Police said that sometime last Friday, Whitehead and her husband reportedly had a dispute which got physical.
It is alleged that a fan was thrown at the Canadian, and her head slammed into a wall. Whitehead reportedly left the home and went to stay at her friends’ house in the same community.
While there, her friends reportedly advised her to visit the hospital, however, Whitehead expressed that she did not wish to go and refused to report the incident to the police.
Police said that while at the house on Saturday, Whitehead went to sleep sometime after 3:00pm. Her friends observed that her head was swollen and tried to convince her to visit the doctor, but she refused.
Further reports indicate that around 5:30 pm, the friends returned home and discovered Whitehead lying in the same position they left her. They realised she was not moving and reported the matter to the Lionel Town Police Station.
The police responded and saw Whitehead’s lifeless body lying face down on a bed. She was clad in a white T-shirt and blue short jeans pants. Swelling was observed on the face and neck and she had what appeared to be blood stains on her hand.
The body was transported to the Lionel Town Hospital, where Whitehead was confirmed dead. Whitehead’s husband has since been taken into custody pending investigations.
Meanwhile, Whitehead’s aunt told Global News that the situation was “difficult to grasp” and that the family was anxious for answers.