Deejay Ninja Man is contending that he was denied bail on a murder charge because the judge was misinformed that he was the leader of a gang called the Umbrella Crew.

The 44-year-old deejay, whose real name is Desmond Ballentine, has been in custody since early 2009.

He is charged with murder, along with his son Janiel and two others, and the deejay has filed documents in the Supreme Court seeking leave to go to the Judicial Review Court to get orders to quash the judge's decision so he can be admitted to bail.

Ballentine is claiming that the prosecutor, who was ill-informed by members of the Jamaica Constabulary Force, misled Mr Justice Lennox Campbell that he was the head of a gang called the Umbrella Crew. Ballentine said he established the Jamaica All for Peace One Umbrella Movement Ltd in April 2008 to campaign for peace and to assist the less fortunate in the society.

He has also submitted affidavits in which he is alleging that because of his peace campaign, witnesses were solicited by a relative of the deceased to tell lies that he committed the murder.

community activity

The director of public prosecutions is named as the respondent in the claim.

Attorney-at-law Hannah Harris-Barrington, who is representing Ballentine, has submitted recommendations from Robert Montague, minister of state for Local Government and Lenworth Taylor, school principal, both confirming that Ballentine was involved in community activities in St Mary and was now in the process of building some classrooms at the Jacks River Primary School in the parish.

A date is to be set for Ballentine's application for leave to go to the Judicial Review Court.

Ballentine is charged jointly with his son Janiel, Seymour Samuels and Dennis Clayton, for the murder of Richard Johnson.

It is being alleged that on March 16, 2009, Johnson was sweeping his yard in the company of a friend on Mall Road, St Andrew, when a motor car with three men aboard drove up. An argument developed between Johnson's friend and the men, who left but later returned with guns blazing. Johnson was fatally shot in the incident.

Ninja Man turned himself in to the police shortly after the incident, upon hearing that he was being sought as a person of interest in the case.