COURTHOUSE SHELLMENT

‘I saw Dudus kill 4’ – Witness tells of murder, guns and drugs
Defence discredits witness at ‘Dudus’ sentencing hearing
Wednesday, May 23, 2012

NEW YORK, USA — A prosecution witness in the case against former Tivoli Gardens strongman Christopher ‘Dudus’ Coke yesterday gave details and damaging evidence of murder, gunrunning and drug-trafficking allegedly carried out at the direction of and by Coke himself.
The witness, who is a former resident of Denham Town and Tivoli Gardens, told an evidentiary hearing here that he was part of Coke’s inner circle which operated a criminal system from Tivoli.
COKE… pleaded guilty to racketeering and conspiracy charges in 2011
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He told the court that the system extended to the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom and involved the importation of drugs and guns into Jamaica.
The witness also related in detail the murders of a least four persons he claimed he witnessed Coke carry out at a ‘jail’ in Tivoli.
However, under blistering cross-examination by defence attorney Stephen Rosen, the witness admitted that he had lied about a number of issues relevant to his testimony.
Among them was the fact that he has used several different names and false documents as identification to enter the United States illegally. Twice deported from the US, the witness is currently serving a five- to seven-year sentence for his last illegal re-entry into the US. He is also facing a 30-year to life sentence for murder, and for which he is seeking to enter a plea bargain arrangement with US authorities.
The hearing ended abruptly after the witness told the court that prosecutors did not prepare him to testify, nor had they gone over the evidence with him.
“This may be a good time for us to stop,” an obviously surprised Rosen recommended to Judge Robert Patterson.
Speaking outside the courthouse at the end of the day’s proceedings, Rosen and colleague defence attorney Frank Dotadado said they were pleased.
“The witness has been totally discredited,” Rosen said.
Yesterday’s evidentiary hearing came out of an order by Judge Patterson to hear from previously unnamed prosecution witnesses who had painted Coke as a murderous drug lord who ruled the notorious Shower Posse with an iron fist.
Prosecutors are trying to convince judge Patterson that Coke should be given the maximum 23-year prison sentence. However, the prosecution has indicated that they would be willing to settle for an 18-year sentence.
Coke, who was extradited to the US in June 2010 following a month-long manhunt preceded by three days of gunbattles that left more than 70 civilians and one Jamaica Defence Force soldier dead in Tivoli Gardens, pleaded guilty last year to racketeering and conspiracy charges — much lesser charges than for which he was extradited.
The deaths occurred after thugs loyal to Coke engaged police and soldiers who sought to enter a barricaded Tivoli Gardens in May 2010 to serve an arrest warrant on Coke. Coke escaped the dragnet but was captured nearly a month later while being chauffeured into Kingston by firebrand Pastor Al Miller.
He waived his right to an extradition hearing in Jamaica and was flown to the US the following day.
Another witness is expected to take the stand today. The hearing is expected to end tomorrow, after which Coke will either be sentenced or a date set for his sentencing.
— Additional reporting by Harold Bailey
Dudus used high school track team to obtain visas for drug mules — witness
BY HAROLD BAILEY Observer writer
Wednesday, May 23, 2012

THE Christopher ‘Dudus’ Coke evidentiary in the US Southern District Court in Manhattan hearing took a bizarre turn today when a second prosecution witness testified that he used a St Catherine-based High School track and field team in a drug trafficking and visa fraud scheme tied to Coke.
Anthony Brown, who said he was an assistant coach at the school in the late 1990’s, said he entered into an agreement with Coke under which Coke would provide several passports which he then presented to the US Embassy in Kingston to obtain visas.
Brown said the visas were obtained on the pretext that the owners of the passports were members of the school’s track team.
He said he was told by Coke that the visas were required as a means of transporting drugs to the US.
During today’s hearing, Coke was in a pensive mood and often interacted with his lawyers. Coke who seemed to have lost weight since his last court appearance in March, watched the proceedings intensely.
Earlier in the morning the first witness in the hearing, Jermaine Cohen, completed his testimony. Despite the best efforts of Coke’s defense team to discredit him, Cohen bravely stuck to his guns and insisted that his testimony was true.
Both Cohen and Brown refused to make eye contact with Coke even though the accused stared straight at them as they gave damning evidence against him.