Pubdate: Thu, 27 May 2010
Source: Toronto Star (CN ON)
Copyright: 2010 The Toronto Star
Contact:  http://www.thestar.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/456
Author: Denise Balkissoon

DEADLY SHOWER POSSE GANG HAS DEEP TIES TO TORONTO

Alleged leader of Jamaica-based drug gang unleashes violence in 
Kingston just one month after a dozen members arrested here

The Shower Posse, a notorious Jamaican gang whose alleged leader is 
at the centre of Kingston's recent rash of violence, has had ties to 
Toronto for the past 20 years.

Christopher "Dudus" Coke, said to be the current leader of the gang, 
which trades in guns and drugs worldwide, is resisting extradition to 
the U.S. The fatal gun violence in Jamaica's capital city is 
reportedly the result of Coke's protectors defending his hiding place.

On Monday soldiers and police stormed a Kingston slum, trading 
gunfire with Coke's supporters. At least four people have been 
killed, including two policemen, one soldier and a civilian, and 
several others were wounded in two days of violence.

The government declared a state of emergency on Sunday in volatile 
sections of the capital as Prime Minister Bruce Golding vowed "strong 
and decisive action" to restore order.

The limited emergency in Jamaica, a popular Caribbean tourism 
destination, covered districts where gunmen shot up or set fire to 
five police stations and carried out carjackings and looting on Sunday.

There were unconfirmed reports of additional civilian deaths and 
reports that military helicopters dropped explosives on the Tivoli 
Gardens neighbourhood of West Kingston where Coke is believed to be hiding out.

Earlier this month, Toronto police conducted Project Corral, a 
massive gang sweep in the city's northwest. Over 70 people were 
arrested, a dozen of them said to be Shower Posse members.

At that time, police identified two alleged Shower Posse leaders 
living in Toronto: Courtney Ottey, previously charged with 
participating in a criminal organization, and Derrick Smith, said to 
be a key firearms and drug supplier.

Shower Posse members don't necessarily look or behave like the less 
powerful gangs they do business with, Staff Insp. Mike Earl said at 
the time. "They're very sophisticated. They're very smart," he said. 
"It's not like they're going to be wearing colours or you're going to 
run into them on a day-to-day basis. They don't wear do-rags."

The 1980s and '90s saw the Shower Posse and other Jamaican-based 
gangs waging a violent turf war in several countries. Over 1,000 U.S. 
deaths were linked to the gangs.

In Toronto, the Jamaican posses were linked to at least 16 murders in 
1991 alone. Local posses brought in hit men from New York, toting 
9-mm weapons to defend control of the local crack cocaine trade.

Some Toronto residents hired private security firms to protect their 
families from stray bullets.

Christopher Coke is the son of one of the Shower Posse's original 
founders, the infamous Lester "Jim Brown" Coke, who died in a 
Jamaican prison in 1992, while awaiting extradition to the U.S. 
himself. The other founder, Vivian Blake, died in Jamaica in March of 
this year, having been deported after eight years in a U.S. jail. 
American law officials have been trying to extradite the younger Coke 
for over a year.

The recent events in Jamaica, as well as the arrests in Toronto, mark 
a resurgence in notoriety for the Shower Posse, whose trail had gone 
quiet here in the past decade or so. After the Project Corral 
arrests, police said they weren't sure if the gang went away and came 
back or just dug down deeper.

Local Jamaican leaders say they are concerned about the unrest in 
their home country.

"We're monitoring it very closely," said Leo Campbell, the vice 
president of the Jamaican Canadian Association.

Campbell said he has heard about the Shower Posse over the years, but 
it's not something that gets discussed very often.

"There are a lot of law abiding Jamaican citizens who reside here, 
making contributions and doing well. We're trying to be progressive, 
but unfortunately these isolated incidents dominate the headlines," he said.

With files from Katie Daubs
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MAP posted-by: Keith Brilhart