MOENGOTAPOE, Suriname — A cavalcade of black sport utility vehicles pulled up at a small village in a jungle clearing in a remote corner of South America. A tall, heavyset man with thick gold chains hanging over a tight shirt emerged from the largest car to a chorus of cheers. Mr. Brunswijk last year became the first Maroon to reach the post of vice president of this small South American nation, perched between the Atlantic Ocean and the Amazon rain forest. Along the way, he had been an elite paratrooper, a soccer player, a wanted bank robber, a guerrilla leader, a gold baron and a father to at least 50 children. His mother has said he has so many offspring that unknown people sometimes ask to hug her, claiming to be her grandchildren.

Source: New York Times January 08, 2021 11:53 UTC