June 22nd, 2012 | By
A panel of judges for the U.S. Court of Appeals in Atlanta shot down Buju Banton’s appeal on federal drug charges on Thursday.
The appeal filed by attorney David O. Markus stated that Banton was relentlessly pursued by a federal informant seeking a $50,000 government payday. Markus says that resulted in improper entrapment.
In addition to yesterday’s decision to strike down the appeal, judges also reversed the lower courts December 2011 decision to throw out the gun charge against the artist.
So now they will decide whether there is enough evidence to hold the deejay accountable for the gun and whether to grant a new trial on the same charge.
“I’m sick to my stomach over this opinion,” Buju’s attorney David Oscar Markus told the New Times in an email. “I truly believe that a good man is in jail for talking a big game. I will continue to fight for him.”
The case against Buju was built by a confidential informant with clear financial motives to the see the singer convicted and a lengthy criminal record, including getting caught bringing an astonishing 700 kilos of cocaine into the U.S.
Informant, Alex Johnson, has earned nearly $3.5 million of untaxed income from Buju’s conviction.
The feds built their case around recordings in which Buju bragged about being an international cocaine dealer.
However, the main DEA agent who tackled the investigation testified that there wasn’t enough evidence to implicate that Buju was in fact a drug dealer.
Reports are also stating that a majority of the recordings were made after the informant ‘plied Buju with alcohol’.
Buju’s attorney is encouraging fans to continue to rally for the incarcerated deejay, despite the decision handed down this week.
“I called him (Buju) and told him about the decision. He, like me, was heartbroken. He couldn’t believe it,” Markus told reporters.
“He believes that we were right and would win.”
“I truly believe that a good man is in jail for talking a big game. I will continue to fight for him,” Markus added.
“He’s been strong for a long while, but this is a big blow for him,” said David Markus.
Banton and his legal team may seek a new trial.
