Dancehall reggae fixture Buju Banton, embroiled in a longstanding drug case which ended in mistrial in 2010, was earlier today sentenced to serve 10 years at the Sam M. Gibbons U.S. Courthouse by Judge James T. Moody. Banton – real name Mark Myrie – will serve his time at the FCI prison facility in Miami where the singer first incurred his cocaine charges in 2009.

The Grammy-award winning and internationally known reggae star was convicted this past February of conspiracy charges relating to organizing a drug deal in a warehouse monitored by police officials. After the 2010 mistrial, federal prosecutors pressed the case based on video evidence which showed Banton sampling the illegal wares and discussing price details regarding the heavy amounts of cocaine being transferred.

Although many in the entertainment community vouched for Buju, including actor Danny Glover, reggae artist Stephen Marley, their vocal and written support of Banton was not enough to stay the judge’s hand. Banton was given the mildest sentence possible according to the law and a firearm possession charge was also dropped. Banton’s attorney, David Markus, has said he will file for appeal on behalf of his client and said he will fight for Banton’s release. Reports state that Banton smiled as his sentence was handed down.

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Jailed reggae artist Buju Banton received positive news on Monday after Florida court jurors declared a mistrial in his felony drug case after four days of discussions.

Details on the mistrial landed online Monday (September 27) evening.

The Florida drug trial of Jamaican reggae artist Buju Banton ended in a mistrial on Monday when jurors said they could not agree on a verdict after three days of deliberations. The 12-member jury had been meeting since Thursday after a four-day trial at the U.S. Courthouse in Tampa. U.S. District Judge James Moody said a retrial would not begin until at least December. (ABC News)

Despite audio tapes, jurors could not reach a definite decision.

During the four-day trial which ended last week, prosecutors played audio recordings in which Banton, whose real name is Mark Myrie, and the informant discussed drugs, ideas for shipping drugs, and dollar amounts. Prosecutors said the tapes showed Banton wanted to finance drug deals. The 37-year-old performer testified he only talked about drugs with the informant in order to impress him. Questioned by Banton’s lawyer, the informant, Alexander Johnson, acknowledged Banton had never given him money. (BBC News)

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International reggae superstar Buju Banton is facing the fight of his life with the revelation that United States drug enforcement agents have recordings of his participation in a cocaine deal.

Buju has been arrested on charges of dealing in illegal drugs and could spend more than 20 years in a federal prison in the US if he is found guilty.

The reggae star is scheduled to appear in court in Tampa, Florida, tomorrow for the first round of what attorney-at-law and University of Miami Professor David Rowe says could be a lengthy trial.

“I think that if he is intelligent and he approaches the case properly, he could get a result that would not end his career, and that would put him in a position where he might be able, in a relatively short period of time, to come out,” Rowe told The Gleaner yesterday.

The veteran attorney was responding to the affidavit made public yesterday by the United States Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA).

In the affidavit, the DEA alleges that Banton, whose real name is Mark Myrie, and two others “knowingly and wilfully conspire and agree with each other and with others unknown to possess with intent to distribute five kilograms or more of a mixture and substance containing a detectable amount of cocaine”.

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