Dancehall Artiste Choppa Banks And Wanted Man Reportedly Killed In Shootout With Police

Emerging dancehall artiste Choppa Banks was killed during a shootout with the police and Manton “Banton” Brown, whose one of St Ann’s most wanted men.

The upcoming entertainer was in the company of Banton, who was wanted in the connection to a 2017 double murder that happened in St Catherine, as well as two other killings he committed.

The shooting that occurred on the North-South Highway of St Ann resulted in the death of Choppa Banks and Banton, while one member of the Jamaica Constabulary Force was injured.

The entertainer, who released songs “ChopMode”, “Dream” and “Bingo”, was slated to perform at May 27 event Neva Short Staff in Runaway Bay St Ann, which also features artistes such as Rhumba and Jahvillani. With the word of his death circulating, the public has been spreading several narratives.

The communications arm of the Jamaica Constabulary Force, the Corporate Communications Unit (CCU) released a statement saying Choppa Banks, whose real name is Swayne Hall, was in a white Toyota Crown motor vehicle with Banton and the vehicle was intercepted by members of the Counter Terrorism and Organised Crime Investigation Branch on the North-South Highway.

Head of the Constabulary’s Corporate Communications Unit (CCU) Senior Superintendent Stephanie Lindsay said the incident took place shortly before 4:00 PM on Saturday (May 21) when the police approached the vehicle and the individuals aboard immediately opened fire at them.

Choppa Banks, who hails from a Queen’s Heights address in Discovery Bay, St Ann, and Banton, who was identified as one of the shooters, later died at the hospital.

According to Superintendent Lindsay, the officers seized a firearm and ammunition.

42-year-old Banton, who was reportedly wanted in relation to the double murder of Alaska Castello and Adrian Thompson in 2017, was also wanted for the September 2020 killing of Clifford ‘Chucky’ Gallimore in Browns Town, St Ann, and also the February 2021 murder of Leabert Piper in the same area.