Vybz Kartel, the renowned Jamaican dancehall artist, had his conviction for the murder of an associate overturned in a London court on Thursday. The court ruled that attempts to bribe the trial jury rendered the conviction unsafe.
Kartel, born Adidja Palmer, is a highly popular figure in Jamaica’s music scene, having collaborated with big names like Jay-Z and Rihanna. He had been incarcerated in Jamaica since 2011 in connection with the disappearance of Clive “Lizard” Williams, though Williams’ body was never found. Following a 64-day trial in Kingston, Kartel and three others were convicted in 2014. Kartel was initially sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum of 35 years, which was later reduced on appeal to 32-and-a-half years.
Last month, Kartel and his co-defendants made their final appeal at the Privy Council in London, the ultimate appellate court in Jamaica and several other Commonwealth countries. Their legal team argued that the trial judge mishandled allegations that one juror had offered a bribe of 500,000 Jamaican dollars (around $3,200) to fellow jurors in exchange for not guilty verdicts.
On Thursday, the appeals of the defendants were granted, with Judge David Lloyd-Jones stating that the trial judge’s decision to allow the juror accused of offering bribes to remain on the jury undermined the integrity of the convictions. The Privy Council has referred the case back to the Court of Appeal in Jamaica to determine whether Kartel and his co-defendants should face a retrial.