Gangland – Page 37 – The Pen Hustle With Brandy Cavalli

Incarcerated Dancehall Artist Vybz Kartel’s St Andrew Home Demolished

Residents of Swallowfield Avenue in Havendale, St Andrew say the demolition of incarcerated dancehall deejay Vybz Kartel’s house on Tuesday has allowed them to breathe easier.

According to Loop Jamaica– The house was demolished after an order by the Kingston and St Andrew Corporation (KSAC) approved a request from prosecutors during the now infamous trial, conviction and 35 year-sentencing of the deejay whose real name is Adidjah Palmer.

“Vagrants had taken up occupancy in the building and they were living in filth. We are so pleased that the house is no more and the terrible blot on our community is gone forever,” one resident told Loop News.

Another resident said the vagrants would steal fruits and other items from their properties and made their lives a living hell.

“They would steal on a daily basis and it’s like they perfected their craft to a T. It was very hard to catch them in the act. The place was very nasty and garbage was strewn all over. Now we can finally live in peace,” the resident said.

The property was (allegedly) the scene of the brutal mauling death of Clive ‘Lizard’ Williams who was killed because he lost an illegal firearm belonging to Palmer, the prosecution argued successfully.

Their case was bolstered by the testimony of chief witness Leonard Chow, who told the court that he managed to escape death by scaling a high gate and hightailing it out of the area.

Chow said he too was marked for death. He has been in protective custody for years.

After the incident, the house was mysteriously torched and prosecutors claimed this was an attempt by Kartel and his cronies to hide forensic evidence.

‘Livity’ Coke, Brother Of Dudus Coke, Appeals Court’s Decision In Prison Beating Suit

Businessman, Leighton ‘Livity’ Coke has filed an appeal seeking to quash a ruling by the Constitutional Court dismissing his application for compensation for the beating he received from soldiers at the Horizon Adult Remand Centre in 2012.

In March, Constitutional Court, comprising justices, Lloyd Hibbert, Jennifer Straw and Nicole Simmons, turned down his application.

But Coke, who is the brother of former west Kingston crime lord Christopher ‘Dudus’ Coke, is contending that the judges erred in certain elements of their rulings.
He says they were wrong when they found that the soldiers did not breach his rights when they beat him on February 21, 2012.

He is also contending that the judges erred when they found that he was not subjected to torture, degrading and inhumane treatment.

In addition, Coke is arguing that the judges erred when they found that the solders did not, over a period of time, issue threats to him, deprived him of basic necessities such as sleep, food and water and caused him to bathe naked in front of a camera.

He further said the judges erred when they found that the actions complained about did not amount to torture.

Coke and five high-risk prisoners had alleged that they were severely beaten by the soldiers.

However, the Jamaica Defence Force had argued that Coke received his injuries while being restrained after he attacked three soldiers.

Jamaica Gleaner

New Zealand’s Largest Gang: Mighty Mongrel Mob

In the 1960s, a gang of variously disaffected youth sprang up in Hawkes Bay, New Zealand.

They didn’t ride bikes, but they quickly developed all the trimmings of an outlaw motorcycle club: patches, club colors, and a fiercely violent process of initiation. They came to be known as the Mighty Mongrel Mob and today they’re the largest gang in the country, with around 30 chapters across both islands. Media access to the Mob is rare, which is why this photo series by Jono Rotman is kind of a big deal.

Jono, who is a Wellington born photographer now living in NYC, cut his teeth capturing New Zealand’s prisons and psychiatric wards, before he took on gang life in 2007.