Jamaica Declares Emergency Amid Unrest
By MARC LACEY
Published: May 23, 2010


SAN MIGUEL DE ALLENDE, Mexico — The Jamaican government declared a state of emergency in portions of Kingston, the capital, on Sunday after supporters of a gang leader who is wanted in the United States on gun and drug charges attacked three police stations in an attempt to pressure the government to let him remain free, officials said.

In the western Kingston neighborhood where the gang leader, Christopher Coke, is holed up, residents set up barricades and exchanged gunfire with the police. The Daily Gleaner reported that gunmen allied with Mr. Coke, who is commonly known as Dudus, were roaming the streets with high-powered rifles.

Amid growing unrest, the government met in an emergency session to try to keep the lawlessness from spinning out of control. The authorities, who said other gangs appeared to be coming to Mr. Coke’s aid, called on him to turn himself in for a hearing on extradition to the United States.

“The police are publicly calling on Christopher Coke, otherwise called ‘Dudus,’ ‘Short Man’ and ‘President,’ to hand himself over,” a police statement said. “The security forces wish to make it very clear that they view the barricading as an act of cowardice on the part of selfish criminal elements, mainly Mr. Coke.”

Mr. Coke is accused by federal prosecutors in the United States of running a major cocaine and marijuana trafficking operation from Tivoli Gardens, the neighborhood in Kingston that he controls. The State Department sought his extradition last August to New York, where he is accused in United States District Court of trafficking drugs and using the proceeds to buy guns in the United States and send them back to his allies in Jamaica.

Prime Minister Bruce Golding, who represents Tivoli Gardens in the Jamaican Parliament, initially balked at sending him to the United States. He argued that results of the wiretapping conducted by Jamaican law enforcement officials that led to Mr. Coke’s indictment were illegally obtained by American prosecutors.

After protests from the Obama administration and from opposition politicians, Mr. Golding agreed to comply with the extradition request. It was then that Mr. Coke’s neighbors in Tivoli Gardens, who say he keeps the peace in the neighborhood, began striking out at the government.

American prosecutors say that Mr. Coke is the leader of the Shower Posse, a drug gang that his father, Lester Coke, used to lead. The gang is accused of hundreds of drug-related killings in the United States in the 1980s. Federal officials sought to extradite Lester Coke to face narcotics and murder charges, but he died in a mysterious fire in his prison cell in 1992 before he could be turned over to the United States.

“It’s kind of like déjà vu,” said Curtis Scoon, a movie producer working on a film about the Shower Posse. “His father was in the same situation.”

Both of Jamaica’s major political parties have fostered ties with neighborhood gangs, which turn out the vote in exchange for political favors.

Christopher Coke, who runs a consulting firm that receives sizable contracts from the government, is linked to the Jamaican Labor Party led by Mr. Golding. Until recently, Mr. Coke was represented by a prominent senator chosen by the ruling party, Tom Tavares-Finson, a criminal defense lawyer. In an interview, he had described his client as a legitimate businessman, not the monstrous criminal described by American prosecutors.

Ross Sheil contributed reporting from Kingston, Jamaica.

If you should ever go to Kingston you will get a feeling of " vu jade "....an eerie feeling you never want to go there again

TV images showed a police station on fire in Kingston
Jamaica's Prime Minister Bruce Golding has denounced unrest in the capital city Kingston as a "calculated assault on the authority of the state".
He vowed that criminals would not triumph, after supporters of an alleged druglord took to the streets to stop him from being arrested.
One police station has been set on fire and two others shot at by suspected supporters of Christopher "Dudus" Coke.
The authorities have declared a state of emergency in parts of Kingston.
The trouble began late last week when the authorities announced they would arrest and extradite Mr Coke to the US.
His supporters set up barricades and said they would fight to protect him.
The BBC's Nick Davis in Montego Bay says the capital now represents a city under siege.
Troops and police have come under fire, and smoke is rising from the burning police station.

Christopher "Dudus" Coke is accused of being a gang leader
Mr Golding said security forces would be "moving swiftly to bring the current situation under control".
"Criminal elements bent on violence and mayhem will be detained," he said in a televised address.
"What is taking place is a calculated assault on the authority of the state that cannot be tolerated, and will not be allowed to continue."
A state of emergency allowing police to conduct searches without a warrant and restrict movement was put in place in West Kingston and St Andrews districts, where the violence broke out.
The government said the measures would be in place for at least a month.
The areas are a stronghold of support for Mr Coke, 41, who says he is a community leader.
Our correspondent says Mr Coke's supporters see him as a man who is fulfilling a role that the government does not.
He looks after them and gives them money when they are out of work, and because of that he has a huge amount of support in the area.
Police have called for his surrender and have described the barricades surrounding his area a sign of "cowardice", according to the Associated Press.
Most wanted
The US Justice Department says Mr Coke is one of the world's most dangerous drug barons. He is accused of leading a gang called the Shower Posse and operating an international smuggling network.

Some residents have protested in defence of Mr Coke
He faces a life sentence if he is convicted on charges filed against him in New York.
The gang has also been blamed for numerous murders in Jamaica and the US.
Jamaican Prime Minister Bruce Golding said earlier this week that he was prepared to send Mr Coke to the US on drugs and weapons trafficking charges.
The decision reversed nine months of opposition to his extradition.
Mr Golding had argued that the evidence against Mr Coke was obtained illegally by intercepting mobile telephone calls.
But he changed his mind in the face of growing public discontent, and questions about his possible ties to Mr Coke.
He apologised to the nation and admitted he had mishandled the case.
The US and UK have warned travellers about possible violence and disorder in Kingston because of the situation.

Jamaica's government declared a state of emergency in parts of Kingston tonight after shooting and firebomb attacks on police stations by suspected supporters of an alleged drug lord facing extradition. The emergency covered the West Kingston and St Andrews districts of the capital, where gunmen had fired on two police stations and set fire to a third; at least one policeman was injured. The attackers were thought to be supporters of Christopher "Dudus" Coke whom the government is seeking under a US extradition request; it has called on him to surrender to the authorities.

Blutarksy, i can assure you ,with great certitude, that , in your case, vuja de is also applicable in the Jamaican mind. having met you, i am sure that everyone there wishes that you never come back again.

I loved my vacation at Half Moon... Dread we know you are a booster on the Kingston chamber of commerce

well, well. wonders never cease. i never thought that you could muster one positive word about any country in the british caribbean. then again, it is early enough in the day for you to retract the statement before nightfall.

have they caught this guy yet

he had better act before the military comes a knocking. this is a good time to turn himself in, unless he would like to go out in a blaze of glory. the army will not be reluctant to provide him with his dying wishes, accent on the word "dying".

Like father like son Deja vu