Part 1 of a two-part series.
At approximately 3:30 a.m. on Saturday, November 2, 1974, Joseph Bramble was arrested after evading police for more than a year in Montserrat. He was apprehended near the Fort Ghaut Bridge in Plymouth when officers – acting on a tip – set up a road block and nabbed him while he was a passenger in a vehicle. The fact that Bramble was caught in the heart of the capital was appropriate considering he had been hiding in plain sight for 18 months, managing to stay one step ahead of the authorities and virtually toying with them. He visited popular establishments and attended crowded events such as the annual Roman Catholic Fete. And he seemed to have an innate sense of when trouble was approaching.
“He was brilliant, a very clever guy,” said Reuel “Gibbs” Hixon, Bramble’s nephew. “He moved around like a cat. He would be hanging out in a bar and all of a sudden he would disappear – and then you would see police swarm the place.”
Bramble had several aliases – including “Coupie” and “Joe Biscuit” – but he was best known as “Fine Twine” due to his lanky stature. Dark in complexion, he stood 6 feet 2 inches with a wiry frame. His arrest brought relief to many residents and especially to the beleaguered Royal Montserrat Police Force, which at times resembled Keystone Cops during the manhunt. Bramble had been a person of interest in a number of crimes, including burglary, indecent assault and marijuana possession. The police even offered a reward of E.C. $1,000 – the equivalent of about $7,000 in 2025 – for information leading to his arrest.
The hunt for Fine Twine evolved into a regional task force, with a K-9 officer and police dog arriving from Guyana to assist with the search. Scotland Yard also joined the investigation, a former officer said. One month before Bramble was captured, Deputy Police Commissioner Paul Valdez issued an appeal through the Montserrat Mirror newspaper. He urged the fleet-footed fugitive to turn himself in and promised that any meeting would be cordial. “I will never condone, encourage or allow any adverse treatment to any person who is detained or wanted by police,” Valdez said. Bramble did not oblige Valdez’s request, and he appeared to relish his celebrity status.
“I think he enjoyed it,” said Wilfred Cabey, a Montserrat police officer from 1972 to 1981. “Yes, he was on the run, but the police were on the run too. Of course no felon wants to be caught. He was trying to prove, ‘You can’t catch me!’ “
Bramble was eventually caught on that early November morning two weeks before his 40th birthday. Four months later, on March 17, 1975, he went on trial with no legal representation and was sentenced to seven years in prison. Sadly, it would not be his last encounter with the law.
There have been a number of habitual offenders in Montserrat over the past century, but what made Bramble unique were his brazen exploits, elusive skills and complex persona. Montserrat Spotlight interviewed many people who knew Bramble: family members, police, neighbors, friends, co-workers. Some recalled him as a scary felon while others labeled him a petty thief who never engaged in a physical altercation. Nonetheless he became the usual suspect whenever there was a crime that fit his portfolio. Many facets of Bramble’s life were incredible and even comical, but his most serious offense – which occurred in 1963 – was no laughing matter, and it reverberated locally for decades.
So who exactly was the notorious perpetrator named Fine Twine?
STORY BEGINS IN DELVINS
Joseph Henry Bramble was born November 16, 1934 in Delvins Village, about a half-mile west of Cork Hill in central Montserrat. His father, Charlie Bramble, was nicknamed “Charlie Biscuit” – which explains why Fine Twine was called “Joe Biscuit.” Fine Twine’s mother, Christiana – best known as “Aunt Nan” – was a laborer who worked for a time at Dagenham Estate picking cotton. Fine Twine was the fourth of his mother’s five children. His elder siblings were Jane-Ann, Thomas and Katie. A younger brother, John, died young.
Fine Twine attended St. Mary’s School in Plymouth. His mischief began early. A former neighbor said “Twine” would remove the sharp aluminum straps from saltfish boxes and create a knife. He would then bore a hole on one end and run a long string through it. When he swung the knife it made a “woo-woo” sound, and he would terrorize and chase younger boys. From a young age, he was agile, lithe and slippery.
“He did things that people said they never saw before,” his nephew Reuel said. “He would climb a coconut tree and then come back down backwards.”
According to legend, Bramble was once caught atop a neighbor’s coconut tree. The angry owner stood at the base of the tree with rifle in hand. He shouted for Bramble to come down at once and threatened to shoot him. Bramble climbed down head-first . . . and the stunned owner ran off.
“He was brilliant, a very clever guy. He moved around like a cat.”
– Reuel Hixon, Fine Twine’s nephew
TROUBLE MAN
Bramble’s first brush with the law occurred in early 1951 at age 16 when he was arrested for stealing a fowl. He was sentenced to six months in jail. He was arrested four more times during the 1950s – usually for theft. Around 1960 he got a job working on a cargo ship. He sailed across the Caribbean, including to Trinidad, where his sister Jane-Ann resided. He told friends that he smuggled guns and liquor during his sailing days and served jail time in Trinidad and Guyana, adding that Guyanese jails were easily the worst.
By 1962 he was back in Montserrat – and back in trouble. He was arrested late that year for battery. The following year his name became forever notorious on the Emerald Isle. Bramble was arrested for sexual assault. The act itself was sordid enough, but what made it even more scandalous was the identity of the victim – the daughter of a prominent white estate owner. The victim, who was engaged to be married, was flown off island for medical treatment. She later identified Bramble during a police lineup. Her father vowed to kill Bramble and was even disallowed from attending the trial in Plymouth. On November 12, 1963, Bramble was convicted and sentenced to six years in H.M. Prison. He apparently was granted early release because by 1968 he was a free man.
Decades later, some remained skeptical about Bramble’s involvement in the sexual assault. They believed he was targeted because of his reputation. But a prison officer during Bramble’s incarceration said Bramble once described the encounter in graphic detail. Another source said Bramble admitted to the crime and even explained his motive.
Upon his release, Bramble, with no prospects for employment, resorted to what he did best – steal. On November 4, 1968, he was sentenced to five years for burglary. With his penchant for thievery, Bramble seemed to operate under a code: He rarely stole from anyone in the Delvins-Cork Hill area. The legendary American outlaw Jesse James was once asked why he robbed banks. “Because that’s where the money is,” he replied. Bramble mostly targeted tourists and expatriates. He would visit Foxes Bay, for instance, camp out in a tree, observe beachgoers and analyze where they stored their belongings, then break into their vehicles while they swam.
Stanford Martin served on the Royal Montserrat Police Force for a decade starting in 1977. He earned a “Dirty Harry” reputation for his aggressive policing and would often be handpicked by superiors to seek out criminals. Martin, nicknamed “Gingerbread,” recalled an incident in which a tourist was robbed of U.S. $400. He immediately suspected Bramble, so he visited a gambling house on George Street that Bramble frequented. When Martin arrived, Bramble was not there, so he asked the owner if anyone came by to gamble using U.S. currency. “Yes, Fine Twine,” the owner said. “He lost $100 [gambling] and said he was going for more money and come back.” Bramble was arrested with U.S. $300 in his possession and jailed after he failed to give a plausible explanation of how he acquired the funds.
CATCH ME IF YOU CAN
The 18 months that Bramble eluded police between 1973 and 1974 featured some bizarre and funny stories and also illustrated the paranoia that Bramble caused for the public and police.
Cabey, the former policeman, grew up just across from Bramble’s family home in Delvins. He said it was awkward searching for a man he knew his entire life. Cabey spent “many sleepless nights in the trenches” looking for Fine Twine and encountered some unexpected hazards. He recalled “cooping” Fine Twine one day while hiding behind a hedge of long grass near a main road in Delvins. A passerby stopped at the side of the road – just feet away from Cabey – to relieve himself. But Cabey could not blow his cover. “The man almost [urinated] on me,” Cabey said.
News that Fine Twine was on the loose scared many women, especially because of the sexual-assault charge years earlier. Folks would lock up their homes at 6 p.m. and retire for the evening. Fine Twine became a proverbial Boogeyman, and his physical features added to his frightening mystique.
Inspector Arthur Lewis spent more than three decades with the Royal Montserrat Police Force. He said he was assigned several times to find Bramble. Asked if it’s ridiculous that one man could elude police for 18 months in tiny Montserrat, he responded: “Not really. Many people used to help Fine Twine hide because they used to gamble with him. The police can only do so much. They need the public’s cooperation.”
Speaking in 2024, one former policeman admitted he was afraid of Bramble after hearing stories about his habit of wielding a cutlass. Police in those days didn’t carry firearms except for special assignments, and Bramble made them look foolish at times. He told friends he would sometimes be perched in a tree and observe frustrated cops down below discussing the harm they planned to inflict on him when they caught him.
Charlesworth “Sonny” Phillip, a retired civil servant and former political candidate who grew up in Cork Hill, said he had several interactions with Bramble during the fugitive’s time on the run. Bramble often sought out fellow villagers, especially youngsters, to run errands.
“He was across from the Mission Church one day and he asked me to go to Fan Boston’s shop to buy him a carton of cigarettes,” Phillip said. “He gave me $100. I bought the cigarettes but when I got back he was gone. Here I was with the cigarettes plus about 80-something dollars in change for him. I didn’t know what to do. I was 8 years old. I ended up throwing away the cigarettes because I couldn’t let my mother know I went to the shop for Fine Twine. I held on to the money for many years. He never came back for it.”
“Many people used to help Fine Twine hide. The police can only do so much. They need the public’s cooperation.”
– Arthur Lewis, former police officer, on how Fine Twine evaded the law for 18 months
During his time in the wind, Bramble changed locations frequently to keep officers at bay. He slept in abandoned buildings, including an old estate house at Elberton near Foxes Bay. He navigated the Delvins-Cork Hill area with ease and knew the territory to a tee, which gave him an advantage over the cops. He would show up at homes of people he trusted – often at night – and get a meal.
Noel “Atiba” John, Bramble’s nephew, grew up with Bramble’s mother (Atiba’s grandmother). Although just a lad, he vividly remembers Bramble visiting the home while on the run in 1973 and ’74.
“Me and my grandmother would be home at night and all of a sudden we would see a small fire in the distance,” Atiba said. “It was my uncle cooking. Sometimes he would come by the house to get salt or something like that. But he never stayed for long.”
A SHOT IN THE DARK
Bramble’s clever tactics took a toll on officers, and so did the specter of his looming threat.
Hubert French, a former policeman, said he and another officer were dispatched to find Bramble in 1973. They were issued a rifle. The two officers staked out Cork Hill School after getting reports that Bramble was spotted in the area. Bramble would visit the unguarded premises at night to get water or use the restroom. But the officers’ search came up empty, so they went to Garibaldi Hill, which overlooks Delvins Village. They figured that Bramble would have to return home at some point.
French said he and the other officer camped out and waited. As day turned to dusk, both officers – while sitting not far apart – dozed off, with French’s partner holding the rifle.
“Suddenly we heard this loud shot, ‘Powww!’ “ French said.
The officers were jolted out of their slumber. It was dark. When they finally calmed down, French realized that his partner had pulled the trigger on the rifle by accident while asleep.
“It scared the hell out of me,” French said. “I thought Fine Twine was shooting at us.”
Click here to read Part 2: Fine Twine goes from wanted man to working man to Englishman.
