Latest news about crime and security in Jamaica. Information about the black market in Jamaica is collected from international organizations, government publications and news articles.
The head of a domestic cigarette manufacturer in Jamaica told the media that cigarette smuggling in the country causes the government to lose between $34 Million to $45 Million (3 Billion to 4 Billion Jamaican Dollars) a year.
Smuggling groups bring in between 44 to 50 million cigarettes into the country’s black market each year.
Source: Nedburn Thaffe, “Government losing billion$ in illicit tobacco trade,” Gleaner, June 8, 2012.
If the prostitution industry in Jamaica was taxed as a business, an estimated $58 Million (5 Billion Jamaican Dollars) a year could be generated in taxes.
Prostitutes can earn up to $470 (40,000 Jamaican) a day.
Source: “Legalise prostitution – Expert says move could increase tax revenue,” Jamaica Gleaner, July 16, 2011.
Jamaican authorities state that there approximately over 300 organized crime gangs operating within the country in 2010. The gangs were responsible for 26 percent of the 1,428 murders that occurred in 2010.
Source: “2011 International Narcotics Control Strategy Report-Jamaica,” United States Department of State, March 2011.
According to US Congressman Eliot Engel, 90 percent of the guns seized in Jamaica’s are from the United States.
Source: Eza Fieser, “Caribbean re-emerges as a drug corridor,” GlobalPost, June 1, 2010.
Cigarette smuggling in Jamaica brings in between 44 to 50 million illegal cigarettes each year.
Source: Alicia Roache, “Drug lords turn to cigarettes.” Jamaica Observer, April 25, 2010.
