Vybz Kartel had permission to keep items found in cell, say lawyers

Lawyers representing popular entertainer Vybz Kartel are calling on the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Paula Llewellyn to determine whether a report this week that he had contraband in his cell is part of a calculated attempt to prejudice his murder case.


Attorneys-at-law Tom Tavares-Finson and Christian Tavares-Finson said Kartel, whose real name is Adidja Palmer, had written permission from the prison authority to be in possession of an Apple iPod device and a DVD player that were found in his cell.
They want the DPP to determine whether contempt of court proceedings should be brought arising from the police report.

On Wednesday, the Jamaica Constabulary Force reported that the DVD player, an iPod, two cellular phones, and three thumb drives were seized from Palmer's cell this month.
The items, the police said, were found during investigations into the murder of popular music producer Patrick Samuels, also called 'Roach'.
The lawyers submitted a copy of the permission granted to Palmer to keep the items in his possession. They said that with respect to the two phones reportedly taken from their client's cell, their investigations revealed that they were actually taken from an adjoining cell.
Kartel and other men are charged with the murder of Clive 'Lizard' Williams, who was allegedly beaten to death at the entertainer's house in Havendale, St Andrew, on August 16, 2011.