The day the cops took out ‘Bulbie’
Today, as promised, we start publishing some of the stories that the Observer covered over its 20 years of existence and which we were not able to accommodate in our commemorative issue on March 7, 2013.
ON October 30, 2005, the security forces swooped down on a palatial home in the rustic district of Tanaky, nestled in the hills of Clarendon, where the nation’s most wanted man, Donovan ‘Bulbie’ Bennett, had been holed up.
Bennett, the then leader of the notorious Klansman gang, had been on the police wanted list for over a decade for murder, shootings, extortion and other serious crimes.
He however had managed to elude the police and take command of the murderous Spanish Town-based gang which ran a massive multimillion-dollar extortion ring.
The police report that as they approached the house they were fired on, and during a shoot-out, Bennett and his driver, identified only as ‘Nathan’, were killed.
Police say they found Bulbie clutching a .50 Desert Eagle pistol and a Ruger pistol was taken from the body of his driver. A quantity of cash and a large amount of jewellery were also found in the house.
At the time of his death, Bulbie’s wealth was estimated at over $100 million. Police also said he had involvement in more than 100 murders.
During the days following his death, members of Bulbie’s gang and persons loyal to him rioted by blocking roads in and around Spanish Town, firing on the Spanish Town Police Station and burning T-shirts with the image of then National Security Minister Dr Peter Phillips.
Two cops were shot and injured during the rioting and a Jamaica Urban Transit Company bus, a motorcar, and a section of the bus terminus were set on fire.
Bennett came to national attention after Heather Robinson, then the ruling People’s National Party member of parliament for South St Catherine, used him as a metaphor for the emerging politically aligned ‘dons’ and warned her parliamentary colleagues to stay away from such figures.
Robinson was forced to quit politics after receiving scant support from her colleagues on the issue.
