Reggae artist Jah Cure is set to appear before the Netherlands Court of Appeals on June 18, 2025, for a substantive hearing that will determine whether Dutch prosecutors can proceed with an attempted murder charge against him.
Over the past few months, a Netherlands investigative judge has been hearing witness testimonies as prosecutors continue their appeal against the singer’s acquittal on the attempted murder charge from his initial trial. Meanwhile, Jah Cure’s legal team has also filed an appeal against his attempted manslaughter conviction.
The upcoming hearing is scheduled to take place from 2:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.
“At the substantive hearing, the case will be presented to the Court of Appeals, and they will decide,” a representative of the Netherlands Prosecution Service stated.
A substantive hearing is one in which judicial deliberation is applied to resolve the dispute, meaning a final decision on the matter is expected.
Jah Cure’s 2022 conviction
Jah Cure, whose real name is Siccature Alcock, has remained in pre-trial detention in Amsterdam while awaiting the prosecution’s appeal of his 2022 conviction.
In March 2022, he was sentenced to six years in prison for attempted manslaughter after stabbing Dutch concert promoter Nicardo ‘Papa’ Blake over unpaid performance fees in October 2021. However, he was acquitted of the more serious attempted murder charge after trial judges ruled that his actions did not constitute a premeditated act.
The prosecution had initially sought an eight-year sentence, arguing that the attack was intentional. However, Jah Cure’s attorney, Tim Scheffer, claimed his client acted in self-defense and that the threatening messages he had sent to Blake prior to the attack were a reflection of “Jamaican reggae culture,” rather than evidence of intent to harm.
The Netherlands court, after reviewing witness statements, CCTV footage, and voice messages, determined that Jah Cure escalated what it described as an “apparently fairly trivial conflict.”
The upcoming appeal hearing will now determine whether Dutch prosecutors can reintroduce the attempted murder charge against him.
