born vincent martin in linstead, st. catherine, jamaica, he turned to a life of violent crime in his teenage years after moving to kingston. short and slim with an "effeminate" voice, he compensated by building a reputation for extreme violence. he was first arrested at 14 for wounding, for which he was sentenced to a birching. further arrests for wounding and larceny followed, leading to a six-month stint in gaol. after this, he became part of a criminal gang and adopted a variety of pseudonyms, including "ivanhoe", "alan ladd" and "captain midnight". in 1946 he was arrested for robbery, beginning his career of self-dramatisation by defending himself in court, irritating the judge with his "long-winded" and grandiose speeches. after a year in gaol, he was released, but quickly committed another robbery, for which he was convicted and sentenced to a five-year term. on 30 april 1948 he escaped from gaol. what followed was a period of several months during which he eluded police, ending in an intense six-week crime spree in west kingston. lurid reports about the spree appeared in the "daily gleaner" newspaper, which popularised his nickname "rhyging".