Bail tightened in $250m drug-linked property case as Hanover crime falls and ICJ warns on staff exits

Retired haulage contractor Donna-Marie Green-Mitchell appeared before the Kingston and St. Andrew Parish Court this week with tighter conditions on her $3 million station bail, as authorities allege she held three properties worth more than $250 million tied to proceeds from her late nephew's drug trafficking.

Green-Mitchell was arrested on June 24 following a joint investigation involving the Financial Investigations Division, the Jamaica Constabulary Force's Constabulary Financial Unit, the Fraud Squad, and the Financial Crime Investigations Division of the Specialized Investigations Branch. She faces three counts each of possession of criminal property, dealing in criminal property, and engaging in a transaction involving criminal property, along with charges relating to arrangements and conspiracy to acquire criminal property.

Investigators say the properties in St. Andrew, St. Ann, and Manchester were initially valued at roughly $120 million and were beneficially owned by Oneil McKenzie, a Jamaican national who lived in Brooklyn, New York. McKenzie was convicted in the United States on drug distribution offences and sentenced to 188 months in federal prison before he died in October 2023 while serving that term. Authorities allege Green-Mitchell knowingly possessed and facilitated transactions involving property believed to represent proceeds from his criminal conduct.

The court was told the case forms part of a wider probe involving another individual who has been extradited overseas. Prosecution counsel informed Parish Judge Sancha Buerral that the file remained incomplete, but the judge ordered disclosure to the defence, directed the clerk to contact the Director of Public Prosecutions, and set November 5 for a mention hearing. Revised bail terms require Green-Mitchell to report to police twice weekly, surrender her travel documents, remain under a stop order, and provide fingerprints. Attorneys-at-law Somair Campbell and Davian Vassell represent her.

In Hanover, Deputy Superintendent Dean Watson told residents at a neighbourhood watch meeting at Hopewell police station that major crime across the parish has fallen by about 25 per cent and that four gangs once linked to lottery scamming, murder, and turf conflict are now considered neutralised. Watson named the Antsinesta, One Link, One Voice, and 100 Rounds gangs, which had eroded the parish's reputation for relative safety in recent years.

Murders in Hanover dropped from 76 in 2023 to 24 in 2025, and police are aiming to keep the 2026 total below 20. Watson said most killings recorded this year have been domestic in nature, though domestic violence remains a serious concern. "Across the parish, we are currently experiencing a 25% reduction in major crimes, and we hope to continue in this vein," he said, noting that many persons identified as gangsters may have left for other jurisdictions while police operations keep pressure on offenders.

Separately, Integrity Commission chairman Carl Lawrence Abimbola said the anti-corruption body lost 29 trained and experienced employees during the last financial year, citing compensation packages and limits on appointment levels within approved salary scales as key retention challenges. Executive director Craig Beresford, appointed in October, said he has held courtesy visits with Prime Minister Andrew Holness and other stakeholders to discuss staffing gaps that could limit oversight and inter-agency coordination if left unresolved.

Despite the departures, the commission recruited 39 new staff, recorded an 11 per cent increase in compliance among public officials filing statutory declarations, monitored 2,026 government contracts valued at approximately $208.6 billion and US$792 million, and completed 112 investigation reports.