A university student who was claiming to be the son of Tivoli Gardens strongman, Chris-topher 'Dudus' Coke, recently sent threats to one of Jamaica's most prominent track and field athletes after his handlers refused to accede to demands for cash.

The imposter has for some time been telling people that he is Coke's son and, in many instances, has demanded cash from them in the strongman's name.

Sources who spoke on condition of anonymity told THE WEEKEND STAR that the man had been frequenting clubs where Kingston's social elite flock and is said to have introduced himself to them as Davion Coke.

The young man, sources said, also made demands on a senior member of the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP), who subsequently obtained a picture of the imposter and forwarded same to Coke's associates in Tivoli who, upon seeing the picture, branded the man an imposter. THE STAR also received a copy of the photograph.

suspicions were aroused

Another member of the JLP, a member of the Senate, whose suspicions were aroused about the validity of the imposter's claims, confronted him at a popular nightclub in New Kingston. During the confrontation, he admitted he was not Coke's son.

But that didn't stop the man from allegedly continuing to perpetrate a fraud on unsuspecting members of the public and fellow students at the university. After befriending handlers of the athlete, he had someone call them claiming to be Dudus and demanded thousands of United States dollars. The money, he claimed, was to be used to host treats for children in several communities. When his demands were not met, he sent an angry text message threatening the athlete.

Unconfirmed reports suggest that reports were made to the police by the athlete's handlers but THE STAR was unable to determine exactly where the report was lodged.

Since then, he has been banned from visiting several nightclubs in the Corporate Area.