Social media is becoming an increasingly popular advertising medium for businesses, and one self-proclaimed Jamaican obeah man is using the tool to reach a wide array of customers – including politicians – who fork out tens of thousands of dollars for his services.

Despite the practise of obeah being illegal in Jamaica, the operator of Jamaica Obeah Store freely advertises his business on Instagram without fear of being prosecuted and his account, which was established in 2020, now boasts over 18,000 followers.

The self-styled obeah man, John Smith* is among dozens of people advertising the service on social media, OBSERVER ONLINE checks reveal.

Praising the wonders of modern technology, Smith said, “It really advanced the world so why not let it advance my business as well.

“My pocket has rejoiced, because I have had numerous customers from overseas. It’s just the time for technology to be used for the betterment of mankind because technology has always been doubted for decades that it will destroy the world. Even with online schooling, people have always doubted online schooling and here it is, it has come into full play,” he told OBERVER ONLINE.

And, although his business is based in Perth Gardens, Manchester, Smith was quick to point out that he is able to provide services for clients who do not wish to meet in person. He said all one has to do is contact him via his social media or on WhatsApp and provide the information he requires for his rituals, then the person can pay using an NCB Account, Western Union, Moneygram, Paypal or Cashapp.

Afterwards, a video of him performing the ritual will be sent via Whatsapp and any other products purchased will be mailed to the address provided. 

Seeking to assure confidentiality to his clients, Smith said, “There is no way that I can have your messages released or any dealings with you known to the public. That has never happened before.” 

Upon visiting his Instagram page, OBSERVER ONLINE found Smith advertising an array of products including oils, guard rings and books for the occult. 

When asked about a love binding spell, Smith stated that this “love ritual” will come at a cost of $45,000. 

“So you send me his full name, his photograph and his date-of-birth over WhatsApp, or you can come and bring them to me in Perth Gardens, Mandeville, Manchester,” Smith stated. 

However, as it relates to the guard ring, which comes at a cost of $65,000, Smith acknowledged that mostly politicians purchase this product.  

“Only politicians will really have these types of protections. If you are not in any form of high danger you don’t have to get so much, they are very powerful. If you are to get all of them [ oil, seal and ring] trust me, you are untouchable. There’s no way you can be harmed by anything, or anyone or any mind,” Smith explained, adding that in addition to an obeah man, he is also a freemason.

At the same time, when speaking on the legalities of his profession, Smith simply said, “Your officials may be practising it far more often than you may ever suspect. It is the practise that is illegal.”

Then he declared that “Lucifer is the God of this world.” 

Meanwhile, attorney-at-law Michelle Thomas told OBSERVER ONLINE that the Obeah law in Jamaica does not serve the public. 

“The officers are not charging anybody for the practice of obeah, it’s now a new norm. So, I think it is something that needs to come off the law book, it is illegal but yet still it is widely practised. It’s just one of those laws that I think we have not gotten around to really updating and it’s something that the legislators should look to address,” she said. 

“From a moral stand-point, I don’t believe in it because of the Christian background from which I grew on, but when you have a law, a law should reflect the current status quo of any society and in countries like Jamaica and Haiti they have a large spread of what we call cultural obeah practises.

“And so, if it is that we were supposed to be hard with the enforcement of this law, a lot of people would get locked up every day. You have some people in Jamaica, they really and truly believe in it and so in modern-day society I don’t think it is reflective of what is happening,” Thomas continued. 

Thomas argued that the obeah situation is similar to that of ganja which was decriminalized in 2015 because, according to her, it did not reflect the belief of the people. She said legislators should now do the same for the Obeah law. 

“Just like how Jamaicans tend to smoke a lot and smoke marijuana and the legislators responded by putting a cap, so if you are caught with a certain amount of ganja then you’re not breaking any law. It’s the same thing when it comes to obeah, a lot of persons practise it, so make the law reflective of the current lifestyle of the people, I think it should come off the book,” Thomas said. 

Meanwhile, Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), Stephanie Lindsay said she is unaware of any recent arrests related to the practice of obeah. She believes the reason for this is due to a lack of complainants coming forward.

“I can’t recall any [recent arrests], maybe in the rural places and so on but certainly I’ve not heard of any in recent times. There are no complainants, so if you don’t have people coming forward as complainants the action is not going to follow,” Lindsay told OBSERVER ONLINE. 

She continued to explain that, “unless they are caught in the act and you see it, then [they can be arrested]. These are things that are not usually done in the open.”

The Obeah Act of Jamaica states that every person practising Obeah shall be liable to imprisonment, with or without hard labour, for a period not exceeding 12 months.

*Name changed per request