(Trinidad Express) A Trinidadian entertainer—once affiliated with a well-known gang in Trinidad, and who has since switched allegiances after moving to the United States—is now under heavy surveillance by US law enforcement authorities.
It is suspected he has connections with a Jamaican gang operating out of the United States, involved in gun smuggling, narco-trafficking, and other illegal activities.
A top US law enforcement official, who spoke with the Sunday Express last week on the condition of strict anonymity, outlined the Trinidadian’s links to this Jamaican gang which is well known in Florida for drug trafficking and gun smuggling to the Caribbean and Central America.
The US insider gave the name of the Jamaican gang, but requested that it not be published. “We have been watching him since 2020 and when he came here, we noticed he got in contact with this gang, after dissing the gang he once operated with in Trinidad.
“After a while, he started to run operations out of this country (US) to Trinidad, with the help of his Jamaican counterparts. And by that I mean shipping guns and gun components out of Florida destined for Trinidad,” the official said.
According to the official, various law enforcement agencies are nearing completion of a case against the Trinidadian and other key collaborators as they probe this sophisticated gun-running network that transports firearms from Florida to the Caribbean.
The official acknowledged an exclusive Sunday Express report published on February 25, 2024, entitled, “Big gun under watch—Local crime syndicate, led by entertainer, on US radar”, indicating the top-secret intelligence report prepared by the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service (TTPS) in April 2023 was also instrumental in helping them build a compelling case against the local entertainer.
That report was sent to the US authorities a few months later in 2023. It outlined in detail the hierarchical structure of the criminal syndicate, their key players—including associates who are well-known local athletes, as well as other notorious underworld figures and a serving member of the Trinidad and Tobago Regiment (TTR) who is also listed as an associate.
“We are very confident that our work, after all this time, will yield results very soon,” the official said.
The US law enforcement official said that on Christmas night last year, the Trinidadian was involved in an incident at a house in Kendall, Miami.
“We knew there was an incident in which we understand that he got a minor injury. We believe it stemmed from some underhanded dealings, but no official police report was made about the incident.
“We also know another Trinidadian was at the house with him, and he too was injured in the leg. We later found out that the other guy’s father is a police officer in Trinidad,” he said.
Background
The Sunday Express had obtained a top-secret report at the time last year, which described a local criminal syndicate managed by the Trinidadian entertainer with strong connections to gang leaders, athletes and other middlemen who assisted him in his illegal activities.
Senior intelligence authorities had previously informed the Sunday Express that this syndicate is part of an organised criminal network that has spread its tentacles throughout the Caribbean and the United States, aiding gun-running, drug trafficking, murder, extortion, and money laundering.
A senior intelligence official with knowledge of the report, which at that time had been sent to several senior officers in the TTPS, said:
“This local criminal network is responsible for a major gun-smuggling operation from the US to here and drug trafficking operations with key regional and international players. The influence they wield here—with the help of influential gang leaders who are complicit with murder and mayhem—makes it even more concerning.”
In the 2023 top-secret report, the entertainer is described as “eccentric, opportunistic and resourceful. A high-level operator within several criminal gang networks in Trinidad and Tobago.
“According to individual profile analysis, he is a monetarily motivated opportunistic (sic) who strives to establish himself as a legit businessman as a Trinbagonian artiste, singer, songwriter from (the area called) with links to all police divisions within Trinidad and Tobago.
“He has a presence in numerous business ventures that run parallel to criminal activities that present significant profits. Information suggests that he is associated with numerous criminal activities as an abettor, accomplice and perpetrator; these criminal activities include murder, firearm offences, robbery, kidnapping, narcotics trafficking and extortion.
“Information suggests he has ordered several killings and shootings in the past.”
