Manchester Drug Convict Agrees to $1.5M Settlement, Surrenders Vehicle to FID

The Financial Investigations Division (FID) has obtained a $1.5 million cash settlement and the forfeiture of a motor vehicle as part of asset-recovery action linked to a drug-trafficking matter in Manchester.

According to an official release on Friday, the recovery stems from a July 25, 2024 operation involving members of the Jamaica Constabulary Force’s Firearm and Narcotics Investigation Division, supported by a highway patrol team. During the operation, officers intercepted a 2013 Toyota Corolla Axio being driven by Mahlon Davis near Hatfield in the parish.

Law enforcement personnel reported that a search of the vehicle uncovered packaged plant material resembling ganja, along with two concealed rectangular parcels marked “NASA” that contained substances resembling cocaine.

Davis was subsequently charged and later convicted in the Manchester Parish Court for several breaches of the Dangerous Drugs Act, including trafficking and possession of both ganja and cocaine. The court imposed multiple penalties, including fines and custodial terms. For ganja trafficking, he was fined $105,816 or six months’ imprisonment, and $15,000 or six months for possession. For cocaine offences, he was fined $500,000 with a four-month sentence suspended for two years for trafficking, and $500,000 or six months for possession.

Following the criminal convictions, the matter advanced to the Manchester Circuit Court under Section 5 of the Proceeds of Crime Act to address forfeiture and financial penalties. Court filings dated January 8, 2026, placed the benefit derived from the criminal conduct at approximately $5.1 million.

Under the agreed settlement terms, Davis is required to pay $1.5 million by manager’s cheque to the Accountant General’s Department and surrender the Toyota Corolla Axio to the FID with clear title. He must also settle an outstanding loan balance of about $98,000, along with any accumulated interest, owed to the financial institution that financed the vehicle.

The court also authorized the commanding officer of the Firearm and Narcotics Investigation Division in Mandeville to release the vehicle to the enforcing authority once the official order is delivered.

Courtney Smith, FID’s director of legal services, said the result highlights the agency’s continued use of the Proceeds of Crime framework to remove financial gains connected to illegal activity and ensure lawful recovery of tainted assets.