US embassy cable - 05KINGSTON1465

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 KINGSTON 001465 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR WHA/CAR (BENT), INL/LP (KBROWN, NBOZZOLO) 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/05/2014 
TAGS: PGOV, KCOR, KCRM, JM, corruption 
SUBJECT: A SENIOR POLICE OFFICER DISCUSSES DEPORTEES, 
POLICE CORRUPTION AND RECENT CRIME PROTEST 
 
REF: A. 04 KINGSTON 02867 
 
     B. KINGSTON 01337 
     C. KINGSTON 01349 
 
Classified By: Charge Ronald S. Robinson for reasons 1.5 (b) and (d). 
 
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Summary 
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1. (C) In a June 3 meeting with Poloff, the head of the 
Criminal Investigation Bureau (CIB), Assistant Commissioner 
of Police George Williams, concurred with one of the findings 
of an Embassy-funded study of deportees, acknowledged deep 
corruption within the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF), 
characterized the May 25 Private Sector Organization of 
Jamaica's (PSOJ) protest against crime as "nice", and said 
that extortion is "big business" in Jamaica.  End Summary. 
 
2. (C) Poloff met with the head of the Criminal Investigation 
Bureau (CIB), Assistant Commissioner of Police George 
Williams, on June 3, to discuss recent public statements he 
made alleging that deportees are involved in many of the 
crimes in Jamaica.  Williams also commented on Commissioner 
Lucius Thomas' proclamation that there is deep corruption in 
the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF), he asserted that the 
May 25 Private Sector Organization of Jamaica's (PSOJ) 
protest against crime was "nice", and that extortion is "big 
business" in Jamaica. 
 
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Deportees Learned their "Trade" in Jamaica 
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3. (C) When asked to elaborate on his statement regarding 
deportees' involvement with crime, Williams responded that 
many of the deportees were either "leaders of gangs or very 
close to leaders before they went to the U.S." They are 
deported for one reason or another, and when they return they 
try to resume or gain control of gangs.  Many deportees face 
resistance, which has resulted in shoot-outs over turf and 
control of extortion rings. (Note: Part of the Embassy's 
Building Bridges Program and funded with a modest public 
diplomacy grant, "Deported: Entry and Exit findings on 
Jamaicans Returned from the United States" is a study done by 
Dr. Bernard Headley of the University of West Indies in 
October, 2004, which provided an academic analysis of certain 
myths surrounding deportees.  Although the study was not 
intended to ascertain the extent to which deportees impact 
crime in Jamaica, the study did dispel the myth that 
deportees go to the U.S. at a young age, become "learned" 
criminals and return to Jamaica where they practice their 
criminal skills. (Ref A) End Note.) 
 
4. (C) Williams stated that the Jamaica Constabulary Force 
(JCF) is unable to adequately monitor deportees due to a lack 
of resources, but he hopes that will change.  Over the past 
two years, CIB has requested a monitoring order for 
approximately twenty individuals.  The order, which lasts for 
one year, requires a deportee to inform the police of where 
and with whom he will live and to report to the local police 
station under a monthly time-frame specified by the court. 
Williams noted that amendments to the Fingerprint Act gives 
police the power to fingerprint and photograph deportees 
immediately upon their return to Jamaica if they were 
convicted of a crime in the U.S.  The CIB has not utilized 
the fingerprint legislation since it was enacted in April, 
2005, he said.  If the monitoring order is breached, the 
deportee is subject to criminal prosecution.  According to 
Williams, none of the deportees have breached a monitoring 
order. 
 
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Corruption in the JCF is Nothing New 
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5. (C) On June 1, Police Commissioner Lucius Thomas told 
police officers at the 62nd annual Police Federation 
Conference that, "we have criminals among us.  It is not only 
corporals, sergeants and inspectors, it goes all the way up." 
 Thomas also alleged that intelligence, while insufficient to 
convict corrupt officers, has revealed that some officers are 
selling official ammunition, are involved in the illegal drug 
trade and share sensitive information about police operations 
with criminals. 
 
6. (C) Williams was very frank in stating that he appreciated 
Thomas' remarks and acknowledged that everyone in the JCF are 
aware of who the corrupt officers are.  I could give you a 
list right now of corrupt officers that would be as long as 
my arm", he said.  Expressing frustration, Williams said 
there is nothing we can do without "hard-core evidence to 
convict."  It is the lack of evidence that has prevented the 
conviction of corrupt cops. 
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Extortion and the PSOJ 
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7. (C) When asked to comment on the Private Sector 
Organization of Jamaica's (PSOJ) May 25 crime protest (Ref 
B), Williams stated that he shares the same view as many 
other Jamaicans that the PSOJ crime protest and business 
lockdown was a good gesture but that nothing will come of it. 
He described extortion as "big business" being conducted by 
gangs and endorsed at every level in the business sector and 
is not being reported. Williams stated that he had personally 
reached out to the business sector to get details on the 
perpetrators; however, the business sector declined to 
cooperate and he did not understand why.  When Poloff 
suggested that it was due to the widespread perception that 
corrupt policemen are involved in extortion, Williams 
acknowledged that this is a possibility in some inner-city 
areas, but that it is definitely not widespread. 
 
8. (C) According to Williams, criminals use funds from 
extortion to purchase high-powered weapons.  The weapons are 
then used in various forms of criminality including taking 
the lives of police and ordinary citizens.  In what he sees 
as collaboration from the business sector, Williams stated 
that some businesses "actually choose to pay freely", thus 
they encourage it.  So while the PSOJ's protest is "nice", 
Williams lamented that it is unfortunate that CIB does not 
have firm evidence to prosecute extortionists as there are no 
witnesses from the business sector willing to come forward 
and testify. 
 
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Comment 
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9. (C) The perception that deportees are the cause of an 
overwhelmingly large amount of crime in Jamaica will continue 
as long as Jamaica continues to struggle with an escalating 
crime rate and an inability to deal with it.  The GOJ's 
insistence that deportees from the U.S., UK, and to a lesser 
extent Canada, are major causes of its crime problem, 
comfortingly implies that other countries bear responsibility 
for the crime rate in Jamaica. 
 
10. (C) Corruption and extortion often go hand-in-hand in 
Jamaica where private citizens do not know whom to trust and 
the authorities have not shown the ability to address the 
problem.  Thomas' announcement was greeted with support from 
the government, opposition and the private sector; however, 
the JCF has a long and hard battle to rid its organization of 
corruption and the stigma that has been attached to it. 
ROBINSON