Jamaican Officials: Alleged Drug Kingpin Caught

(June 23) -- Jamaican authorities say they have captured alleged drug kingpin Christopher "Dudus" Coke at a checkpoint on the island, ending a five-week manhunt that pitted poor residents of the capital against police and soldiers and left more than 70 dead.

Coke, 41, is wanted in the U.S. on drug and weapon trafficking charges and faces an extradition request in a U.S. District Court in New York. "We look forward to working closely with the Jamaican authorities to bring Coke to justice to face charges pending against him in Manhattan federal court," Preet Bharara, the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, said in a press release issued late Tuesday. The court issued an extradition request for Coke in August 2009.

Police said at a press conference Tuesday that Coke surrendered that day without a fight, accompanied by a well-known local pastor. Jamaican newspaper The Gleaner said the Rev. Al Miller, who had previously negotiated the surrender of Coke's sister and brother, helped bring him into custody. However, The Miami Herald reported that it was unclear whether he was captured, surrendered or something in between.

Asked whether Coke's arrest would spark new violence, Jamaican government spokeswoman Donna-Marie Rowe said, "Everything is contained at this time."

Jamaican press reported that Miller and Coke were on their way to the U.S. Embassy, where Coke was expected to surrender, when he was apprehended by police. But the Herald reported that U.S. Embassy officials were not aware that he was under way.

Last month, Jamaican Prime Minister Bruce Golding issued a warrant for Coke's arrest and sent police into Coke's Kingston stronghold, Tivoli Gardens, to find him. But residents fought back against security forces, waging a four-day battle. By the time security forces got control, Coke was nowhere to be found. When police busted into the office Coke used as his base of operations, they found a piece of computer paper with the words "Jesus Loves Me" taped to the wall, a number of boxing trophies and a hardcover book called "The 33 Strategies of War." No one was inside.

Strongmen like Coke have been seen as a growing threat to law and order in Jamaica since the 1970s. Known on the island as "dons," they control mostly poor neighborhoods in the capital and outlying areas by providing residents with public infrastructure, school fees and security -- services that residents claim the government has long failed to provide. Over decades they have emerged as political kingmakers too, counted on by Jamaican politicians for votes.

Golding said his decision last month was a first step in a larger war against organized crime. During the siege on Tivoli Gardens, more than a dozen other dons surrendered to security forces, the government said.

But the siege was unpopular with some Jamaicans and this month prompted a no-confidence vote, which Golding narrowly survived. Residents of Tivoli Gardens say unarmed individuals were killed by security forces. The government says it is investigating the allegations.

Coke is believed to be one of Jamaica's most powerful men. Raised in Kingston in the 1970s, he went by a number of nicknames, according to his grand jury indictment, including "General," "President" and "Shortman." His father, known by the name "Jim Brown," is believed to have founded a drug gang called the "Shower Posse," which operated in both Kingston and New York.

The senior Coke died in jail in 1991 in a mysterious fire, while he was facing an extradition request. Authorities say his son then took over operations of the business.

Authorities say Coke had prepared his stronghold in Tivoli Gardens for battle. Security forces collected numerous assault rifles, improvised explosive devices and closed-circuit televisions that they said were used to monitor intruders. They also said his supporters had dug underground tunnels and had their own police uniforms.

The government, which last month erected barricades of chicken wire and stationed soldiers throughout the neighborhood, says the area is now fully disarmed.