Major (Maj) Akeen Haughton-James is a proud son of the parish St. Mary, Jamaica. He attended the St Mary High School, and during that time, was a schoolboy cadet in the Jamaica Combined Cadet Force (JCCF). While in the cadets, he rose to the rank of Cadet Company Sergeant and subsequently Cadet Under Officer, the highest rank a schoolboy cadet may achieve. Upon completing his Caribbean Advance Proficiency Exams in 2006, he joined the Jamaica Defence Force (JDF) as a Potential Officer.

Maj Haughton-James subsequently attended the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst (RMAS), having completed a recruit intake. He was commissioned into the JDF in December 2007 as a Second Lieutenant and posted to the Second Battalion the Jamaica Regiment (2 JR).

He joined the 1 Engineer Regiment (JDF) in 2008, where he moved through the appointments of Troop Commander, Liaison Officer, Adjutant, and Officer Commanding. He completed his Combat Engineer Officer’s Training with the US Marines at Camp Lejune, North Carolina, USA, in 2010. He attended the Caribbean Junior Command and Staff Course (CJCSC) in Moneague Training Camp, St. Ann, Jamaica, in 2014 and was a Directing Staff there in 2016 and 2019. In 2015 Major Haughton-James attended the Army Operations Course at Fort Frontenac, Ontario, Canada.

Maj Haughton-James was appointed as Detachment Commander for the Caribbean Infantry Training Centre (CITC) in April 2020.

He completed a Bachelor of Engineering Degree in Civil Engineering at the University of Technology in 2020 and is currently pursuing a MSc in National Security and Strategic Studies at the University of the West Indies.

He is married to Jannielle and has two children, Liyah and Amir.