Jamaican Me Escape: From Kingston to Montreal, a Miracle-Filled Escape from Hitmen, Crime, Drugs, and Chaos
Some people survive history. Others survive stories that should have ended long before they could ever be told. William (Bill) “Gibby” Gibson is one of those rare individuals whose life reads like a Hollywood thriller, except every harrowing chapter in Escape from Jamaica: A True Story of Crime, Faith and Redemption actually happened.
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- Firsthand account of Montreal’s notorious 1970s drug underworld
- Survived a contract killer and imprisonment in Jamaica
- Faith transformed a life consumed by crime and danger
- Insider perspective on organized crime’s violent golden era
- Reveals roots of today’s international drug trafficking networks
As a naïve Irish Canadian hippie in the 1970s, Gibson found himself pulled into the drug pipeline connecting Montreal and Jamaica, where idealism quickly gave way to violence, betrayal, and survival. When a contract killer arrived to eliminate him, he turned to questionable allies in a desperate bid to stay alive. Along the way, he endured a terrifying stint in a Jamaican prison and witnessed firsthand the ruthless criminal networks that dominated Montreal’s underworld during one of its bloodiest eras.
Long before organized crime became the subject of binge-worthy streaming series, Montreal was a battleground controlled by the West End Gang, the Dubois brothers, the Italian Mafia, and outlaw biker gangs. Gibson lived in the middle of it. His firsthand account offers a rare window into the people, places, and events that helped shape the modern international drug trade and gang culture are still making headlines today.
But this isn’t simply another mob story. It’s the remarkable testimony of someone who escaped a world that consumed nearly everyone around him. Most of the friends, associates, and criminals Gibson encountered are either dead or serving life sentences. He survived through an extraordinary combination of luck, perseverance, and ultimately, faith, making his journey as much about redemption as it is about crime.
Gibson is an outstanding guest for true crime, history, faith-based, and current affairs programs. His story sparks conversations about organized crime, prison life, addiction, second chances, and the enduring consequences of choices made in youth. With authentic, edge-of-your-seat storytelling and the perspective of someone who lived through one of North America’s most violent criminal eras, he offers audiences an unforgettable interview that is both riveting and deeply inspiring.
Escape from Jamaica isn’t just a memoir. It’s living history told by one of the few people fortunate enough to walk away and tell the tale.
Relevant Article(s):
OPTIONAL Q&A:
- How did an idealistic young hippie become entangled in the drug trade between Montreal and Jamaica?
- What was going through your mind when you realized a contract killer had been sent to murder you?
- What was the most terrifying experience you endured inside a Jamaican prison?
- How accurately do movies and television portray Montreal’s violent underworld of the 1970s?
- Why do you think you survived when so many of the people you knew ended up dead or serving life sentences?
- What role did faith play in helping you escape a life of crime and find redemption?
- What lessons from the drug trade of the 1970s still apply to today’s fentanyl crisis and transnational cartels?
- What do you hope readers learn from Escape from Jamaica: A True Story of Crime, Faith and Redemption that they won’t find in other true crime books?
ABOUT WILLIAM ‘GIBBY’ GIBSON…
Gibson is a Canadian author, musician and former marijuana smuggler whose extraordinary life carried him form suburban Canada into the violent underworlds of Montreal and Jamaica during the 1970’s. Along the way he encountered organized crime figures, political gang leaders, drug traffickers and individuals linked to covert Cold War operations while surviving prison, assassination attempts, betrayals and countless brushes with death. After decades of reflection, Gibson has written Escape From Jamaica to tell the full story for the first time. Equal parts true-crime memoir, adventure story and spiritual testimony, the book chronicles a life transformed by danger, faith and what Gibson believes were a series of extraordinary interventions that repeatedly saved him from disaster.
TO SCHEDULE AN INTERVIEW, CALL OR TEXT 512-966-0983 OR EMAIL BOOKINGS@SPECIALGUESTS.COM
