Members of the St Catherine South Police Division have captured a reputed gang leader after a long pursuit. The suspect, 40-year-old Courtney Ashley, is believed to be at the centre of several violent criminal investigations, including murder.
Ashley is also known as “Bloodstain”, according to reports. Investigators describe him as the alleged head of the Bottom Marverly Gang and say he has known links to criminal groups operating along Yacca Avenue and 440 Drive. Ashley was captured by law enforcement officers in Phoenix Park, Portmore, St. Catherine, on Monday. A report says officers found him during a planned operation in the gated community.
Reports say Ashley has been a long-standing target of the Jamaica Constabulary Force and was the subject of repeated appeals through the Force’s Wanted Wednesdays campaign. Police said he was being sought in relation to the killing of Andrew Foster in 2017 and a separate incident on Fenbrook Avenue in St Andrew that left another man nursing injuries. He is also under investigation in multiple other violent incidents, including a double homicide that recently occurred in St Andrew South.
In September last year, the Jamaica Constabulary Force announced that it had stepped up efforts to locate and arrest Ashley, whose last known address was listed as Abby Close, Leas Flat in Red Hills, St Andrew, per a Jamaica Observer report.
Investigators revealed that Ashley previously escaped capture during a major security operation conducted on July 21, 2025, along Jacks Hill Road in St Andrew. That operation, led by the Counter-Terrorism and Organised Crime Investigation Branch, disrupted what police described as a planned contract killing. Five men were fatally shot during the incident, and five firearms were seized. Ashley was identified as an alleged sixth participant but managed to flee.
While authorities have not yet outlined the charges he is expected to face, Ashley remains in police custody.