The longest-running criminal trial in the history of the Jamaican circuit court came to a close Thursday (March 13), with an 11-member jury finding Vybz Kartel, née Adidja Palmer, guilty of the August 2011 murder of Clive "Lizard" Williams.

Although Williams's body has yet to be recovered, the verdict came in after less than two hours of deliberation with heavy security on site for crowd control surrounding the Supreme Court in Kingston, reports Billboard.

Kartel's associates, Shawn "Shawn Storm" Campbell, Kahira Jones, Andre St. John and Shane Williams, were also found gulty. 

The "Poor People Land" singer and his lawyers have maintained that the police are framing him, citing the lack of evidence brought by the prosecution. "The injustice system of Jamaica is trying to use me as a scapegoat for crime, so they're trying to build a case that doesn't exist," he said last year, in response to trial delays that kept him in custody for two years.

Also in 2013, Kartel was acquitted in the death of 27-year-old promoter Barrington "Bossie" Burtona, and his jail cell was raided in connection with an investigation into the death of his former road manager, Patrick "Roach" Samuels. 

A sentencing hearing for the murder verdict has been set for March 27. Kartel's lawyers have indicated that they will appeal.

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(Photo: Scott Gries/Getty Images)