Retired haulage operator faces money laundering charges over $250m property portfolio

A retired haulage contractor who stands accused of safeguarding three high-value properties tied to alleged criminal proceeds on behalf of her deceased nephew — a convicted drug trafficker in the United States — returned to the Kingston and St Andrew Parish Court yesterday under stricter bail terms totalling $3 million.

Donna Marie Green-Mitchell, taken into custody last month on several money laundering-related counts, saw her station bail amended to require twice-weekly reporting to the police, handover of her travel documents, placement on a stop order, and submission of her fingerprints.

Prosecutors told the court the case sits within a broader probe that also involves another person who has since been sent abroad for trial.

Green-Mitchell was detained and formally charged on June 24, 2026, after a coordinated inquiry by the Financial Investigations Division, the Jamaica Constabulary Force's Constabulary Financial Unit, the Fraud Squad, and the Financial Crime Investigations Division of the Specialised Investigations Branch.

The charges against her include three counts each of possessing criminal property, dealing in criminal property, and taking part in transactions involving criminal property. She is also accused of entering into or becoming involved in an arrangement to obtain criminal property for herself or another person, acquiring criminal property, and conspiring to acquire criminal property.

Authorities say Green-Mitchell controlled three properties worth in excess of $250 million for her late nephew, O'Neil McKenzie, a Jamaican who had been living in Brooklyn, New York.

The Financial Investigations Division said its officers traced how the assets — first assessed at roughly $120 million and situated in St Andrew, St Ann, and Manchester — ended up registered in Green-Mitchell's name.

Investigators maintain McKenzie was the beneficial owner. He was found guilty in the United States of drug distribution offences and received a federal prison term of 188 months. McKenzie died in October 2023 while still serving that sentence.

They further claim Green-Mitchell was aware she held the properties and helped move or manage transactions involving assets believed to stem from McKenzie's alleged illegal activity.

At yesterday's hearing, the prosecution advised Parish Judge Sanchia Burrell that the case file remained unfinished. Even so, the judge directed that disclosure materials be supplied to the defence.

Judge Burrell also told the court clerk to reach out to the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions about the matter.

The case was adjourned to November 5 for mention, and Green-Mitchell's bail was renewed on the updated conditions.

She is being defended by attorneys-at-law Samoi Campbell and Davion Vassell.