Jamaica is a small island nation in the Caribbean. The country is no different: there are no unique architectural monuments and amazing natural beauties. But in Jamaica, crime and drug trafficking flourish, which, combined with the creepy cult of Voodoo, makes it one of the most dangerous places on Earth.
Poverty and aggression
The roots of crime in Jamaica lie in the dire socio-economic situation of the majority of the population. High unemployment (10 to 15%) and lack of prospects push people to commit crimes.
The situation is especially difficult in the capital of Jamaica, Kingston. The increase in crime was influenced by the migration of the population from the villages and the formation of a ghetto for settlers around the city. From among them local criminal groups are actively recruiting new "cannon fodder". Here they begin their criminal "career" as teenagers, at the age of 10-15 years.
Gangs, by the way, have been actively influencing the situation in the country since it gained independence in 1962. The criminals are closely intertwined with politicians and receive orders from some of them to kill or intimidate competitors.
The main occupations of Jamaica's criminal gangs are drug dealing, robbery, racketeering and extortion. There are about 30 gangs in Kingston alone. In Jamaica, they are called Yardies. The largest of them are Shower Posse, Vineyard, Mona and others. Often, groups are named after the area they "hold".
In the first five months of 2017 alone, nearly 650 people were killed, according to the Jamaica Police Department - an average of four murders a day in a country of about three million people. This is 19% more than in the same period in 2016, when the homicide rate was 50 people per 100 thousand of the population (for comparison, in the United States this figure is just over nine, in Canada - 1.6). By the end of the year, the number of those killed was about one and a half thousand people. As the then head of the Jamaican police, George Quallo, noted, 70% of such crimes are the work of gangs.
King of Kingston
The most famous leader of the Jamaican criminal gangs is Christopher Coke, who led the Shower Posse from 1992-2010. He had strong connections in political circles, which allowed him to build his own "cocaine empire". Coke shipped drugs mainly to the United States.
Gradually he became the real king of the Kingston ghetto. Many local residents idolized Coke, because he gave them food, medicine, provided local schools and kindergartens. The western part of the city, which was controlled by the drug lord, became a de facto independent state with its own rules and "laws". In 2010, he was captured in a special operation and sentenced to 23 years in prison on racketeering charges.
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"Wild" roads
Another popular method of “earning money” among locals is a banal robbery on the road. Mostly the victims are taxi drivers and late travelers. With the onset of darkness local routes turn into a real "safari", where hundreds of thugs thirsty for profit act as hunters. It is highly discouraged for tourists to travel unaccompanied by security.
Usually criminals put thorns on the road that pierce the tires. After the car stopped, thugs armed with pistols run out of the bushes and take all the valuables from their victims.
Taxi drivers and employees of transport companies are afraid to go on country roads at night, preferring to wait until morning. If the flight cannot be postponed at night, then they take firearms with them.
Drugs
The US Drug Enforcement Administration has noted a fivefold increase in drug trafficking through the Caribbean region in recent years. According to the US Department of Justice, about 100 tons of drugs enter the United States through the Caribbean every year.
A considerable part of them go through Jamaica, which has long become a transit point for drug traffickers. Law enforcement agencies constantly detain traffickers in death, but so far it has not been possible to combat drug crime.
Thus, in August 2015, the Jamaican police found 450 kilograms of prohibited substances in containers intended for sea transport. And in December 2014, law enforcement officers found a record shipment of marijuana weighing 1,860 kilograms on a ship south of the island.
However, the state itself is gradually liberalizing its drug legislation. So, since February 2015, Jamaicans can store up to 60 grams of marijuana. Moreover, it is officially allowed to grow up to five hemp bushes.
Voodoo
One of the most creepy cults in Jamaica is Voodoo. All kinds of magic rituals and conspiracies with the use of special dolls are popular among the locals, thanks to which you can "steal" the health and even the life of your enemy.
The sorcerer speaks to the doll to connect with a real person. Sticking needles into it, the black magician sends damage, illness and other troubles to the enemy, up to death.
Ivan Proshkin