Coke’s supporters and fellow gang members have attacked several police stations and have placed heavy barricades around Coke’s hiding location in Trenchtown. Ironically, many of Coke’s supporters are using violence and putting their lives on the line to protect him and their financial futures.
West Kingston is a poverty stricken area where unemployment is over 30 percent. Coke, who controls the drug trade in West Kingston, has been known to feed hungry families and pay medical bills for those in need. Although he attained power by killing and selling illegal narcotics and guns, he is viewed as a hero in West Kingston for providing funding and employment opportunities to the poor. If Coke is extradited back to the United States, many of his supporters fear that their financial situations would suffer with him away from their community.
Coke also has close ties with the Jamaica Labor Party, the leading political party in Jamaica, and some of its members believe that Coke could testify against them in a U.S. court.
In a place where corruption runs rampant on the streets and overtly on the government level, Coke has become a symbol of how desperation and greed can fuel violence. –amir shaw
