Jah Cure gets six years in prison

SOURCE: Jamaica Star Reggae artiste Jah Cure has been sentenced to six years in prison for attempted manslaughter.

The artiste, whose real name is Siccature Alcock, was sentenced in a Dutch court a short while ago after the Court of Amsterdam rejected his claim of self-defence.

Alcock was detained in The Netherlands for his involvement in a stabbing incident, where promoter Nicardo ‘Papa’ Blake was injured last October in Amsterdam.

The prosecutor stated that Jah Cure’s actions prior to the stabbing showed it was premeditated, and he intended to cause wounding and harm to Blake.

The alleged stabbing was preceded by an argument over money owed to the artiste by the promoter, totaling $5000 Euros for a concert he performed at the Melkweg.

Evidence presented against Jah Cure included witness statements and voice messages from himself to the promoter.

In the closing statements, the prosecutor demanded that Cure be sentenced to no less than eight years.

According to Frank Wattimena, press officer for the Netherlands Public Prosecution Service, although the claim of self-defence was rejected, the court found Jah Cure, 43, not guilty of attempted murder.

Instead, he has been sentenced to six years in prison – with credit for time served – for attempted manslaughter.

This is not Jah Cure’s first run-in with the law; he was previously convicted for two counts of illegal possession of a firearm, rape and robbery with aggravation, for which he served eight years of a 15-year sentence which he received on April 26, 1999.

He was released in 2007 and gained popularity from singles Longing For and Prison Walls (Reflections) released while he was imprisoned.

Then in 2015, he was detained at a Port of Spain police station after being accused of taking payment for a performance that he was a no-show.

His album, The Cure, was nominated for a Best Reggae Album Grammy Award the following year.

If there is any disagreement over the court’s ruling, Alcock, and his attorney-at-law Tim Scheffer, can appeal to the Court of Appeal within two weeks.