Flippa’s lawyer vows to appeal
MIKE Farrell, attorney-at-law for embattled dancehall deejay Flippa Mafia, vows to appeal his client’s 25-year conviction when he returns to court in September.
In an exclusive interview with the Jamaica Observer, the top-flight Philadelphia defence attorney said the court made several missteps, which will form the grounds of his appeal.
“We were disappointed at the severity of the sentence. All he’s guilty of is being loyal and faithful in the support of his family,” Farrell told the Observer yesterday.
“We’re appealing the entire trial as they (the court) made several legal errors,” he continued.
After a three-year legal battle, Flippa Mafia (given name Andrew K Davis) was found guilty of first-degree distribution of cocaine, second-degree money laundering and second-degree conspiracy. He was sentenced to 25 years in the Camden Superior Court in New Jersey, last Friday.
The 37-year-old entertainer will have to serve 12 years before being eligible for parole. He was also ordered to pay a US$250,000 anti-money laundering profiteering penalty.
Prosecutors are also seeking a retrial on the charge of leading a narcotics trafficking network, which carries a maximum sentence of life in prison.
“That would amount double jeopardy,” said Farrell. “We have a September date for status appeal as well as the retrial.”
In legal parlance, double jeopardy is prosecuting a person twice for the same offence.
The deejay’s brothers — Kemar and Roger Davis — were sentenced in March to 20 and 10 years, respectively.
According to court documents, the deejay ran an international drug ring that used the United States Mail and other delivery services to ship cocaine from California to New Jersey. More than 26 kilos of cocaine and over US$500,000 in cash were seized from the network.
Also known as the Flossing King and Flippa Moggela, the entertainer was known for hurling hundreds of dollar notes into the audience during his performances. He appeared in the 2002 movie Shottas and his better known songs include
Unfinished House and Hear Mi Hear.
