City Puss identified by cop who tricked him in prison

A retired gang investigator recalled on Wednesday how he had visited alleged Clansman-One Don Gang deputy leader ‘City Puss’ in prison under the guise that he was a gangster and spent an hour chatting with him before surprising him with criminal charges.

The police inspector said that when the defendant, who he had never met before but positively identified in court on Wednesday as Jason Brown, realised what had happened, “all hell broke loose”.

The officer said Brown refused to speak with him further and hurled “all kind of bad wud and badness” at him.

The senior gang investigator testified that he went to charge the defendant after he had listened to several expletive-laced voice notes and live conversations with City Puss demanding money from business operators and threatening to kill them if they did not comply.

According to the police witness, who had been investigating the gang, he learned in 2018 about a string of extortion-linked voice notes that were being circulated in Spanish Town, St Catherine.

The witness said he later heard the voice notes after gaining the trust of several business operators who allowed him to listen them as well as live conversations that they were allegedly having with Brown.

AGGRESSIVE TONE

Recalling that he had heard about 30 voice notes and three live conversations, the inspector said he noticed that the speaker would identify himself as City Puss.

The alleged gangster’s voice reportedly matched the bass intonation in the voice notes and “always comes across as aggressive and issuing threats and using expletives”.

He said the speaker was heard saying, “If you don’t give or pay up mi money, yuh a go dead and we know weh yuh family live. Memba.”

The witness also remembered that the speaker would always refer to a recent murder or a business place that had been torched and would also invite the victims to report the matter, indicating that he had a police mole who would pass on information about any accuser who turned up at the station.

The officer told the court that victims who shied away from making a formal report out of fear and distrust for the police would, however, try to negotiate a lesser fee.

The inspector said he then contacted defendant Stephanie Christie, with whom he had established an informant relationship, and enquired about the alleged gangster and was told his correct name and that he was at the Horizon Adult Correctional Centre.

The inspector said he later visited the facility and confirmed that Brown was there and checked his visitor sheet.

The court also heard that the gang investigator later carried out an operation and arrested persons for extortion. While those detainees were being interviewed at the Spanish Town Police Station, Brown reportedly called one of them and identified himself as City.

The inspector told the court that Brown called twice and that he heard the conversation in which he issued instructions to the speaker.

Based on information collected and reported disclosures by Christie, the witness said he went to charge Brown.

However, he said when he got there, he asked for the defendant and told the prison official not to disclose his identity.

When Brown entered the room, the witness said he shouted out, “City, a you dis. Brethren, a long mi no see you.”

Brown, in return, enquired who he was, but the officer said he just started speaking to him under the pretence of a gangster and about privileged information.

According to the officer, he recognised Brown’s voice as consistent with recordings and live conversations to which he had been privy. The cop said that he prolonged the conversation for an hour to further establish that the voice was a match.

When he was satisfied that Brown’s voice matched City Puss’, the inspector said he then revealed his true identity to Brown and charged him with extortion, being a member of a criminal organisation, and breaches of the anti-gang legislation.

Brown quickly became boisterous, the cop said.

The officer said he heard Brown’s “extorting voice” and stood there looking on as the accused gangster allegedly tried to induce fear and exert dominance.

However, before the inspector identified Brown, the accused’s attorney, Diandra Mitchell, vigorously opposed the dock identification, arguing that it should not be permitted as the prosecution had not laid the foundation for the identification.

Mitchell also argued that the officer had not submitted the voice notes and live conversations or any other evidence to support his testimony.

However, the judge told her that the issue at hand had moved from merely a voice identification to a visual one and said that the voice notes were of no moment as the officer had spent an hour with her client talking under bright lights.

Bryan and 32 other alleged gang members are being tried on an indictment with 25 counts under the Criminal Justice (Suppression of Criminal Organizations) Act and the Firearms Act.

The trial will resume on Monday.