Accra, Aug. 1, (BBC/GNA) – Jamaican dancehall artist Vybz Kartel has been freed from prison after judges decided he should not face a retrial for murder.
The 48-year-old, real name Adidja Palmer, was jailed in 2014 but his conviction was overturned by UK judges in March.
He had been accused of killing of Clive “Lizard” Williams in Jamaica but has always maintained his innocence.
Although his conviction was overturned months ago by the Privy Council in London, authorities in Jamaica had time to decide whether he should be retried.
On Wednesday, appeal judges in Jamaica decided the case would not go back to court, meaning Kartel, who is said to be in poor health, could be released.
His trial in 2014 heard that victim Clive Williams and another man, Lamar Chow, were given two unlicensed firearms belonging to Kartel for safekeeping.
When they failed to return them at an agreed time, prosecutors said they were summoned to Kartel’s house in August 2011.
Chow told the trial they were attacked and the last thing he saw was Clive Williams – who was never seen alive again – lying motionless on the ground.
The house burned down days later and his body has never been found.
Kartel and his co-accused Shawn Campbell, Kahira Jones and Andre St John, have always maintained their innocence but were convicted and jailed for life, with Kartel told he would spend a minimum of 35 years in prison.
He appealed first to courts in Jamaica before taking his case to the Privy Council in London, which serves as the highest court of appeal in Jamaica and other Commonwealth countries.
His defence team argued that a juror accused of trying to bribe others should have been thrown off his trial.
The London court agreed with Kartel’s case and ruled in March that the decision not to remove the juror made the conviction unsafe.
The judges said it was “fatal to the safety of the convictions which followed” and “an infringement of the [defendants’] fundamental right to a fair hearing”.
On Wednesday, Justice Marva McDonald-Bishop, one of three judges sitting at Jamaica’s Court of Appeal, said they had weighed up the “egregious nature and seriousness of the offence” against the passage of time, lack of access to witnesses and evidence and the huge expense of a retrial.
She also said Kartel was in “declining health” and a new trial would have an impact on his physical and mental wellbeing.
“We conclude that the interests of justice do not require a new trial,” she said, adding that Kartel and his co-defendants were formally acquitted.
According to the AFP news agency, there was heavy security at the courthouse in Jamaica’s capital, Kingston, and the hearing was closely watched across the country.
‘Mammoth day for dancehall’
Vybez is known as one of Jamaica’s most popular artists and has collaborated with performers such as Jay-Z, Eminem and Rihanna.
His best-known hits include Clarks, Ramping Shop and Summer Time, and his success led to him launching lines of shoes, alcohol and condoms.
The singer also became the first dancehall artist to star in his own reality TV show, Teacha’s Pet.
Seani B, who presents 1Xtra’s Dancehall Show, tells BBC Newsbeat Kartel’s release represents “a mammoth day for Jamaica, a mammoth day for dancehall music, and a mammoth day for the Jamaica judicial system”.
“He’s easily one of the biggest dancehall artists in Jamaica,” Seani says.
“And for the last 14 years, Kartel has probably become even more infamous. Now on his release, I would say he’s returned to a space that’s been awaiting him for so many years.
“There’s a whole new generation of dancehall fans that are just waiting for Vybz Kartel’s return to that music.”
Seani was DJing at Boxpark in Croydon, south London, on Wednesday and says he was on his phone backstage listening to the court’s ruling.
“When it was announced, it was jubilant.
“It’s a relief for a lot of people but at the same time, we’ve got to think about the family of the person that was murdered so many years ago.”
GNA