A growing number of Jamaican women have begun speaking publicly about alleged encounters with a man they say has been harassing, threatening, and assaulting women for over two decades. The man has been identified by multiple women as Orville Dietrich, who frequents Devon House, though all allegations remain unproven.
One woman shared that she was with her child at Devon House when the man approached her. She alleged that she repeatedly turned down his advances, but he refused to take no for an answer. When he continued to pressure her and follow her around the venue, she reported the matter to the security guard, who later confronted the man.
However, the discussion he had with the guard was reportedly not enough for him to leave her alone, and he continued to stalk her. The woman expressed that she felt fearful for her child and eventually threatened to run him over with her car. This made him finally give up his pursuit.
Another woman shared a detailed account of an encounter she says occurred while attending an event also at Devon House. She explained that she arrived alone and was making her way toward the entrance when she was approached in a dimly lit parking area by a man who introduced himself as “Christopher”. She later learnt that this name was allegedly false.
According to her account, the man immediately began complimenting her appearance and insisted on speaking with her, despite her visible discomfort. She said the interaction felt aggressive from the start and that she chose to give him her real phone number out of fear, believing he would call it immediately to check if it was fake.
“I gave this guy my number because I did not want to have to deal with him,” she said. “He was very, very aggressive.”
In the video, she stated that after she entered the event, she encountered the same man again near the bathroom area, despite having left him at a different entrance earlier. She described being startled by his presence and said the lighting made it difficult to clearly see him. During this second encounter, she said he continued to pressure her to leave with him, repeatedly suggesting restaurants and drinks, even after she told him she was not interested.
The woman alleged that when she rejected his advances, he blamed her clothing for his behaviour, telling her that the way she was dressed was the reason he was being aggressive. She said he continued to insist that his actions were out of character and that this was “the first time” he had behaved that way.
Fearing the situation could escalate, she described attempting to de-escalate while positioning herself closer to security. She said she agreed to vague future plans only to create an opportunity to safely disengage. Before she was able to fully leave the interaction, she alleged that he hugged her inappropriately.
After the encounter, she said the man repeatedly called her phone the following day from multiple numbers. She did not answer. She later shared her story publicly as a warning to other women.
“He does not take social cues. He does not keep his hands to himself,” she said. “He does not take no for an answer.”
