AMSTERDAM — Rapper Djaga, whose real name is Jason Leonara, was granted prison leave in the Netherlands on Sunday. The 33-year-old artist, who has a Surinamese-Antillean background, was convicted in 2016 for directing the liquidation of Abderrahim Belhadj in the early morning of May 9, 2016 in Amsterdam-Zuidoost.
The court found it proven that Leonara had lured the victim to the crime scene with text messages because there was supposed to be a sex party there. The court had sentenced him to fourteen years in prison at first instance, but the court ultimately sentenced him to eighteen years on appeal in 2019.
“Djaga, also known as ‘JayJay’ or ‘Het Kind’, is a prominent and highly controversial figure within the Dutch street rap scene”
Leonara will therefore have to sit for a while, but can now prepare for a good return to society through reintegration leave. It is unclear what conditions apply to Djaga’s leave and whether he also wears an ankle monitor.
Despite his imprisonment, he – as a former member of the gangster rap group Green Gang from Amsterdam-Zuidoost – was able to regularly release new music in recent years with tracks that he recorded within the penitentiary walls. In 2019 he scored a gold record from prison with his single ‘Ride or Die’. This led to parliamentary questions about how it was possible that “a serious criminal and cold-blooded murderer” could score a hit in detention.
More suspicions
Djaga, also known as ‘JayJay’ or ‘Het Kind’, is a prominent and highly controversial figure within the Dutch street rap scene. He initially gained fame as a member of Green Gang from Amsterdam’s Bijlmer, which mainly consisted of boys with Surinamese roots.
Leonara’s name surfaced in the case of the controversial murder of criminal Vincent Jalink, but this did not lead to new prosecution. In recent months, he has been labeled as a suspect in a large-scale murder investigation in Curaçao, which is linked to the infamous crime organization No Limit Soldiers (NLS). That investigation is still ongoing.
