‘EVERYONE KNOWS I’M A SNITCH’
Ex-gang trial witness on charges says cover blown overseas; claims Jamaican police have turned their back on him
A JAMAICAN man who was a state witness in a high-profile gang trial has got himself in trouble with the law in the territory to which he was dispatched under the Government’s witness protection programme but claims he is being shunned by local authorities.
The key witness, whose testimony was crucial in the recent conviction of gangsters, was relocated from Jamaica before the trial.
However, four years into his new-found life, he was slapped with charges for two offences that occurred months apart.
The Gleaner has withheld the man’s identity, the name of the territory, and the specifics of the gang trial because disclosure could present a safety threat. The newspaper will also not publish the specific offences he is facing.
Speaking with The Gleaner on Monday, the ex-witness, who said he could not muster sufficient funds to post bail and will return to court on Thursday, professed his innocence and criticised the police and managers of the witness protection programme for a lack of support.
“I feel like I not getting no justice. ... I have my money, can assist myself and my money can’t even help me ... because the people dem on the programme have my passport,” he said.
The former witness, who is an ex-gang member, disclosed that the judge presiding over his case is aware that he is registered with the witness protection programme but considered him a flight risk.
Attempts to get comment from Deputy Commissioner of Police Fitz Bailey, who heads the crime portfolio, and Assistant Commissioner of Police Anthony McLaughlin, who leads the Counter-Terrorism and Organised Crime Investigation Branch, were unsuccessful. Calls to both senior cops’ mobile phones went unanswered on Monday.
The sharing of his image on social media in relation to allegations drew unwelcome attention, the witness said, making life dangerous.
He claimed that he was identified from his home community in Jamaica, the name of which The Gleaner has withheld. That outing, the former witness said, tipped off inmates, who he alleged tried to poison him. He was also reportedly subjected to a stabbing attack in jail.
SAFETY JEOPARDISED
The former state witness, who said he has been in jail since January, told The Gleaner that his cover was blown and that his safety has been jeopardised.
“They beat me inside there. Prison officers trying to beat me. You know how it feel to know say the prisoners dem want kill you because you is an informer and a snitch. They know I is a witness and thing; that’s why I have to be in a cell by myself,” he said.
Jamaican police officials have long touted the strength of the security apparatus insulating persons on its witness protection programme, saying no one who has remained under its wing has been killed.
Increasing reliance on the antigang legislation to dismantle criminal organisations could turn more scrutiny on its protection mechanisms in high-stakes cases like the Clansman-One Don Gang trial under way in the Home Circuit Court.
According to the former state witness who The Gleaner interviewed, it appears that programme officials have been reluctant to help him as there was no further need for his services.
“Is like they turn their back on me. They washed their hands of me. They put money on my visit per month for me to survive. I call dem and ask them if I could get extra money,” the ex-witness said.
The former witness, who revealed that he would prefer being held in police custody in his homeland than overseas, cited high levels of xenophobia towards Jamaicans.
“Dem people ya don’t even like Jamaican even worse. They move me from the population because they heard that I was a witness and the Jamaicans were going to kill me over there. Everyone over here know I am a snitch,” the ex-witness told The Gleaner.
The accused man, who is in his early 20s, said he has nobody to turn to, as he had testified against his own family during the high-profile gang trial.
“I can’t even call dem and beg dem a dollar. I hear the lawyer charging a hefty price and I hear say the people on the programme paying the lawyer. She not even visit me by the jail or ask me about the case.
“I need little more help, man. I swear, I can’t go through this,” he said.