Incarcerated dancehall artiste, Tommy Lee Sparta is reportedly weighing his options before taking the Covid-19 vaccine.
Donahue Martin, the artiste’s legal representative, stated that “he appears contemplative,” but expressed more concern for his family.
“He hasn’t decided one way or the other. His overall mood was very pleasant, and he was glad to see me (so) he asked a lot of other personal questions, mostly about how everyone was doing,” he stated.
The Shook deejay, whose real name is Leroy Russell, was arrested last December on gun and ammunition charges and is currently serving two concurrent sentences: three years for illegal possession of a firearm and two years for illegal possession of ammunition. Prior to that, in July 2020, while in jail, he vomited and was rushed to the hospital, where he was treated.
Martin revealed that his client is ill, but he did not have permission to provide any further details and could not confirm whether this was the reason the deejay did not receive the vaccine.
“I am not at liberty to say the nature of his illness,” he said, “but he does have what some would describe as a lifestyle disease.” “As a result, he must be careful with his diet and so on. Interestingly, when I saw him [earlier this week], he wasn’t vaccinated for whatever reason, but he never complained about his health. He is generally upbeat and pleasant, and he is not a drab personality; he simply takes things one day at a time “Martin stated.
In April, it was announced that vaccines had been allocated for all adult correctional institutions, but 90% of inmates were hesitant to take them. Despite this, Matthew Samuda, minister without portfolio in the Ministry of National Security, told the Senate last Friday that Jamaica had the fewest COVID-19 cases in its correctional system in the hemisphere.
Meanwhile, Dr. Christopher Tufton, Minister of Health and Wellness, has stated that he would welcome the support of incarcerated entertainers, specifically Vybz Kartel, on the ministry’s ‘Every Vax Counts’ campaign. On September 3, the dancehall icon was one of 30 inmates at the Horizon Adult Correctional Centre who received the vaccine.
