BLUE LANTERN APPLICATION 05-946041

UNCLAS KINGSTON 001255

SIPDIS

STATE FOR WHA/CAR (WBENT),PM/DTCC BLUE LANTERN COORDINATOR

E.O. 12958: NA
TAGS: ETTC KOMC JM
SUBJECT: BLUE LANTERN APPLICATION 05-946041

REF: STATE 062395


1. (U) Econoff spoke with Michael Crichton, president of
Crichton Brothers, Inc. on May 9. Paragraphs 2-8 (below)
respond to questions asked in Reftel, Paragraph 3.


2. (U) The company's typical customers for these weapons are
businessmen, farmers, and quite a few policemen who are
purchasing their own off-duty firearms. The weapons are
used for personal protection. By law, there is no pistol
sport-shooting allowed in Jamaica.


3. (U) Their customers are located throughout the island.
They are the only licensed dealers in Montego Bay, and their
core business model focuses on servicing the markets in the
cities of Mandeville, Negril, Brown's Town and Falmouth, as
well as the parishes of Trelawny, Hanover, Manchester and
Saint Ann.


4. (U) The company does have an established, legitimate
customer base for its pistols and ammunition. They sell to
anyone who comes in with a permit to purchase issued by the
police. They have been in business since 1935, and are the
oldest arms dealer on the island. Until recently, they have
been piggybacking on Ernest Hoo's (Arms & Ammo) import
license, placing orders through him and reselling the
weapons. Due to this arrangement, Crichton Brothers let
their import license lapse in the 1980s.


5. (U) According to Michael Crichton, sales records are
retained forever. The company records the date, name of the
customer, address on the license, the make of the gun, the
rounds of ammunition purchased - the type of which has to
match the approved gun on the police-issued license, gun
license number, and customer's signature. They currently
have records going back to 1985. Earlier records were
destroyed in a fire.


6. (U) The company understands the prohibitions on re-export
and re-transfer outside of Jamaica, and have no plans to do
so. Crichton said he only ever exported weapons once, in
1977, to an owner who had emigrated to Canada and wanted
them to ship his gun collection.


7. (U) Post feels that the company is likely to abide by
these provisions. Crichton Brothers is an old, well-
established company with a long track record of legitimate
gun sales. In recent years, they've purchased weapons from
Arms & Ammo (Ernest Hoo, proprietor),but with his recent
difficulties in meeting demand from his customers, Crichton
Brothers, Inc. has decided to resume importing the weapons
directly.


8. (U) If the Department wants Post to do a site visit, Mr.
Crichton says he's more than happy to receive an officer
from the Embassy. Montego Bay is located approximately 100
miles from Kingston, and traveling there takes roughly four
hours by car.

TIGHE