bahamasdepartmentofcorrections

The sanctuary filled slowly, then all at once with uniforms, family and friends of Johnathan Johnson.

Laughter and tears mingled as loved ones remembered the life of the police constable killed last month in a crash along East Bay Street.

He loved being an officer.

To Pastor Monique Davis of Judea Family Worship Center, he was “Johnny,” a young man who loved God and showed it quietly.

“I knew he loved his God,” she said. “He used to work the late shift, get off at 8 o’clock, and by 11 o’clock he was still in the house of the Lord.”

After every Sunday service, he had a ritual. Stuttering slightly, smiling widely, he would follow her and ask, “Mama, what you cook?” The church erupted in laughter at the memory.

He loved to give. Last Christmas, he bought her a pair of shoes, the heel too high, and insisted she walk in them so he could see how they fit.

Senior Assistant Commissioner of Police Rodger Thompson described him as diligent, respectful and unwavering in his loyalty to the Royal Bahamas Police Force. After a transfer from the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services, he served in Prosecutions and the Western Division with dedication.

“He was called to serve,” Thompson said. “Humble, well-mannered and kind.”

But it was his best friend, Tyrik Ingraham, who captured the ache of the loss.

Friends since high school, they were inseparable, fishing for hours, arguing over who caught more, communicating without words. “We were the only two that could make jokes,” he said softly and tearfully, “but not to be joked on.”

“I lost a brother,” Ingraham said. “I lost someone I trusted with life-changing decisions. I lost someone who could pull me out of my darkest moments.”

Elder Justin Rahming remembered training alongside him as a prison officer, how he once slept through the training sessions and still passed the exam. Later, when Rahming met him at a police roadblock, Johnny’s simple request was, “Pastor, pray for me.”

Featured images and photos: Through the Eyes of Ezra

For Mary Robinson, 69, this holiday season comes with the gift of home and family. The Oklahoma grandmother, jailed on December 2, in the Bahamas for gun possession and inability to pay her $8,000 fine, is now free and on her way home in time for Christmas.

Robinson had been visiting the Bahamas on a Royal Caribbean cruise with her 12-year-old grandson when authorities discovered a loaded firearm in her purse. While she had legally owned the gun in the United States, she could not pay the fine and was sentenced to 24 months in the Bahamas Department of Corrections.

Her granddaughter, Graci Exendine, quickly mobilised and, in an urgent GoFundMe campaign, raised over $12,000 to secure her release, appealing to strangers and supporters to bring Robinson home.

The relief came this week. “Mary is at the airport waiting for her flight! She should be home tonight,” Graci posted on social media. “I want to again thank everyone who has helped get our Mary back home.”

Robinson’s lawyer, Bjorn Ferguson, explained that the grandmother “has a touch of dementia” and normally leaves the firearm in her vehicle. Somehow, it was forgotten in her purse before boarding the ship, the “honest mistake” that set off a chain of events that could have kept her away from family for months.

After her release, Graci updated supporters again: “I just talked to Mary. She is out. She’s staying at a hotel tonight, and then we’ll figure out her passport and flight tomorrow! Thank you everyone who has been keeping up with Mary and making sure she gets home to her people.”

Relatives of a 69-year-old grandmother jailed, are pleading for compassion after she was sentenced to 24 months in prison for possession of a loaded firearm found in her purse at the Nassau Cruise Port.

Mary Robinson, of Oklahoma, was arrested last Tuesday while attempting to board the Liberty of the Seas. Security officers discovered a loaded .380 pistol inside her handbag, a weapon her family says she simply forgot was there.

“I’m asking anyone or everyone to help out if they can. I know holidays are so close but if anyone can help we would appreciate it so much,” her grand daughter Gracie Exendine pleaded.

Robinson, who was traveling with her 12-year-old grandson, told authorities she normally carries the gun for personal protection at home and leaves it in her vehicle before travel. But, according to relatives, this time she forgot it was still in her purse.

After she was unable to pay the $8,000 fine, she was taken to the Bahamas Department of Corrections last Thursday to begin a two-year sentence.

Gracie launched a GoFundMe campaign, writing that Robinson “needs a miracle” and begging for help to bring her home in time for the Christmas holidays. The campaign has since raised more than $12,000.

According to the Nassau Guardian, Robinson’s attorney, Bjorn Ferguson, argued in court that she has “a touch of dementia” and struggled during her initial detention, claiming she “had to contend with very aggressive rats” at the Central Police Station.

He also told the court that Robinson was legally licensed to carry the weapon in the United States and that the gun had been a gift given to her more than 50 years ago. Ferguson says the incident was an honest mistake.

Her relatives say they are desperate to get her home.

Wails turned into screams. Cries of “Oh Jesus!” echoed through the New Mt. Zion Missionary Baptist Church as the casket of 23-year-old Prison Officer Ashantio Johnson was wheeled slowly down the aisle.

It was a moment that broke the church.

Family members collapsed into grief, some trembling, they had to be held and fanned. Others waved, unable to contain the shock of saying goodbye to Johnson, whose life was cut short.

Click here to watch the mourners’ reaction at Ashantio Johnson’s funeral.

Some mourners called it “the saddest funeral ever.”

Mario Curry said the service ranked among the most heartbreaking he had ever attended. “This service is included in the saddest services in law enforcement for me.”

Bunnie Sturrup, another mourner, repeated, “This is the saddest funeral.”

Johnson, originally from Lower Bogue, Eleuthera, had only recently joined the Bahamas Department of Corrections, following in the footsteps of his sister, Corrections Sergeant Clendina Johnson-Smith.

She remembered him as “humorous,” and “the life of the party,” a young man whose presence always filled a room.

But his future was cut short when he was stabbed during a pub brawl that also injured two of his colleagues.

At the graveside, grief took on a deeper and more emotionally crushing sound.

One witness described the moment Johnson’s mother said her final goodbyes. “Just to hear that mother quote that old familiar song had me snotty right up.  “It was the most emotional thing I’ve heard. Can a mother tender care cease towards the child she bore?”

The Bahamas Department of Corrections said the atmosphere surrounding Johnson’s death and funeral was “heavy with sorrow,” as colleagues struggled to process the loss of someone they described as “cherished by those who knew him.”

They remembered him for his courage, his commitment to duty, and the promise of a career that had barely begun.

Johnson was laid to rest at Lakeview Memorial Gardens.

Featured Images: Bahamas Department of Corrections

Friends and family of 22-year-old prison officer Ashantino Johnson, who was killed in a brawl early Wednesday morning, say they are heartbroken and in disbelief. Many described him as a humble, respectful young man with a bright future ahead of him.

“He was such a humble officer with a bright future ahead of him,” wrote friend Myzz Lovely Deleveaux in a social media post.

Johnson was one of three people stabbed during an altercation at a popular pub on Blue Hill Road North. He later died from his injuries.

Originally from North Eleuthera, Johnson previously served as a Ranger Cadet with the Royal Bahamas Defence Force before joining the Bahamas Department of Corrections.

One of his former coordinators, Tevin McPhee, remembered Johnson as a standout cadet.

“He was my ranger–quietly respectful, big-hearted and always quick with a smile that could light up the parade,” McPhee said.

“I used to joke, ‘I don’t like people taller than me.’ He’d bend his knees just to make me laugh. He was thoughtful, playful and full of love for people around him.”

Johnson had recently graduated as a corrections officer and was excited about his future on the job.

Coworkers also shared their grief online. One said she last saw him marching proudly in the color party at the Department’s annual church service on Sunday.

“This is truly tragic,” she said.

His mother, Marie Cash, wept over her son’s death.

“My baby, look at my baby. Mommy loves you, Clevy,” she cried. “They took my baby, oh Jesus.”

His cousin, Ezranique Cash, said, “This world was too evil for the kind heart you had.”

Another colleague remembered him as dedicated and dependable.

“Always willing to step forward for any duty or task, very mannerly and loving,” the coworker said. “You weren’t just my teammate, you were like a little brother.”

Friend Edward Pratt recalled their last conversation.

“You had so many plans ahead of you. My last words to you were, ‘Stay focused and keep your head up.’”

His sister, Chante Johnson, shared her heartbreak on social media.

“Y’all killed my baby. 2025 hasn’t even finished yet. I can’t catch myself,” she wrote.

Another friend, Sheila Thompson, added, “You deserved so much better. This was the biggest heartbreak of the year.”

Johnson’s death has sparked an outpouring of grief and tributes, as loved ones remember a young man whose life was filled with promise and cut tragically short.

Serial Sex Offender Sidney Cooper is set to be released from the Bahamas Department of Corrections on Friday after a six-year sentence.

The 47-year-old man was convicted of 15 sex crimes dating back to the year 2000.

In 2021, he appealed a sentence but lost his bid to quash his 6-year sentence arguing that the maximum penalty should have been 3 years.

Magistrate Samuel McKinney refuted his claims, stating that a provision in the law allows the doubling of a sentence for recidivism.

What is known about Sidney Cooper

It is believed he sexually assaulted 23 women in almost two decades

In 2019, he sexually assaulted a teen girl in the downtown area.

He groped a 9-year-old girl at a public pump in 2016

He groped a policewoman while on trial in 2016.

While on trial, Cooper groped a 2nd woman officer in court in 2021.

Experts have diagnosed him with frotteurism — he achieves sexual stimulation or orgasm by touching and rubbing against a person without consent

Cooper was to receive special treatment while imprisoned.

What Sidney Cooper said before his release from prison

Minister of National Security warned that Cooper could re-offend stating that when he spoke with Cooper he said that he is aroused by women who dress in shorts, smile with him, whose hips move while they walk, and “lick” their lips.

Copper said he has a “spirit in him since he was a child and does not believe that the spirit should bow.”

“

Cuban migrants housed at the Bahamas Department of Corrections have stopped eating.

After one week at the facility, 152 migrants are demanding to be confined elsewhere, routinely at the Bahamas Department of Corrections.

Hurls of insults in Spanish are echoed down the hall as they beat the prison gates and throw their clothing out of the cells into the corridors.

Officers familiar with the situation said the group should not have been placed at the facility and is protesting to get the attention of officials.

It is reported prison officials have been trying to get immigration officials to visit the group but as of Thursday afternoon, no one from the Department had arrived.

Of the group, six men are confined to a cell and most are reported to be former marines from the communist island nation where they escaped economic and political woes, worsened by tightened U.S. sanctions and negative effects of the COVID-19 pandemic— food shortages and inflation.

Prison officers fear the group may use its tactical skills on guards so attempts were made to keep the men in their cells.

A father and three adult sons are reported to be among the group.

Some have reportedly collapsed after refusing the food offered food by prison staff.

A man in the group translates their demands from Spanish to English.

In recent weeks, the Bahamas has seen a significant influx of Cuban migrants.

Sam Bankman Fried, former FTX CEO was sent back to prison today after some apparent confusion at his court hearing. It was expected that he would appear in the Bahamas court today to be extradited to the United States. However, when he arrived, no one seemed to know that he was coming.

The Daily Mail reported that the 30-year-old tapped his foot nervously and clenched and unclenched his hands before the judge arrived.

After the judge’s arrival, his lawyer Jeron Roberts told the court, “I did not request him to be here this morning.”

It is reported that Prosecutor Frankly Williams seemed surprised too, stating that the government of the Bahamas neither the government of the United States knew that Bankman-Fried would appear before a judge today.

“We are here for a certain purpose,” he said, then asked if Bankman-Fried can “tell us why he is here.”

The court was adjourned for 45 minutes for Roberts to speak with Bankman-Fried on the sidelines.

After the adjournment, Bankman-Fried was sent back to the Bahamas Department of Corrections, and no final decision was made regarding his extradition.

Sources familiar with the matter said over the weekend, that the fallen crypto genius would appear in court on Monday to willfully return to the US after a short stint at the correctional facility.

His extradition to the US means he could be sentenced to an estimated 115 years in prison. US prosecutors accused him of “one of the biggest financial frauds in US history.”

Bankman-Fried was initially expected to return to court for a bail hearing on January 7 and an extradition hearing on February 8.

Photo credit: Reuters

Four days since his recapture, escaped inmate Winston Walker is now in maximum security, under 24-hour watch at the Bahamas Department of Corrections.

Walker who was on remand, escaped the facility on Wednesday, and after a manhunt for the 30-year-old Jamaican national, he was found on a property in the Sea Breeze area.

Walker, accused of attempted murder, armed robbery and attempted armed robbery, is now on lockdown for 24 hours,  each day of the week, to prevent another escape.

A prison officer who did not wish to be identified said Walker’s escape came after four weeks of intense training in inmate escape prevention.

But Walker escaped nonetheless when he was permitted to go to the Medical Department during which, a fight escalated in the upstairs area of the facility. Walker used the distraction to escape, jumping over a wall at the back of the prison.

According to reports, other inmates watching did not alert authorities, but only shouted, “Freedom, freedom, freedom.”

Walker escaped Wednesday afternoon and was captured at 1 am on Thursday when officers from Operation Ceasefire, responded to a call about ”a prowler” on a property in the area.

Authorities at the prison have since placed locks on the back gate of the facility as an added measure to prevent escapes.

Winston Walker, the man who escaped the Bahamas Department of Corrections on Wednesday was captured early Thursday morning without incident.

The Jamaican national was spotted walking in the early morning hours in the Sea Breeze area, which is not far from the facility, after residents saw a “prowler” on a property.

Officers of Operation Ceasefire responded and arrested the 30-year-old escapee after 1 am.

Walker, accused of attempted murder, armed robbery and attempted armed robbery, escaped the remand unit of the facility, causing alarm.

Officials still have not revealed how Walker escaped the prison.