A United States and a Bahamian national have been convicted in connection with a 2006 smuggling trade in which a Jamaican man died when he was forced to jump from a boat in which migrants were being transported illegally to Jupiter Island, Florida.

Rickey Thompson, a Bahamian boat captain, and Leon Brice Johnson, a U.S. citizen, were convicted in the Miami Court on Tuesday on charges of murder, alien smuggling and importation of narcotics.

According to court records, Thompson and Johnson arranged to transport 11 migrants, including the Jamaican identified as Nigel Warren from Freeport, Bahamas, to Jupiter Island, Florida, on December 28 last year. The migrants reportedly paid the two men between US$1,500 and US$4,000 each for the trip on the assurance that they would be dropped off on the beach or in waters no higher than their ankles.

But on the day in question, the court was told that, about 9:00 p.m., Thompson stopped the boat in deep, rough waters off the shore of Jupiter Island and ordered the migrants to jump. Those who could swim complied with the order while the others who could not swim, including Warren, stayed on board. Thompson then pulled a gun and ordered them to swim to shore, which they did.

However, police later found the body of Warren in the waters near the shore and the boat grounded on rocks nearby. A black duffle bag with marijuana and cocaine was also found.

Both men face a maximum sentence of death or life imprisonment for the charges.

- Source: Hardbeatnews.com