U.S. Department
of Justice
Combatting Gun and Gang-Related Violence
The Office’s Violence and Organized Crime Unit as well as Prosecutors in the Office’s White Plains Division bring prosecutions focused on addressing gun and gang-related violence in communities within the Southern District of New York. These prosecutions, which often make use of the federal Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (“RICO”), include the following:
Homicides and Murders for Hire
- Maine Man Charged with Participation in a Murder-For-Hire Scheme: In March 2023, Hyunkook Korsiak was arrested for participating in a plot to commit murder for hire in Midtown Manhattan. Unbeknownst to Korsiak, he had plotted with undercover FBI agents and the intended victim was fictitious. The FBI began its investigation after the Bureau of Prisons intercepted communications Korsiak sent expressing his desire to kill a person for money. Upon his arrest, agents seized four firearms, a bullet resistant vest, hundreds of rounds of various caliber ammunition, a latex mask, rifle scopes, high-capacity magazines, and latex gloves. Korsiak pled guilty in April 2024 and will be sentenced in March 2025.
- Federal Inmate at MDC Brooklyn and Two Others Charged with Orchestrating Murder-For-Hire Using a Contraband Cellphone: In October 2024, Dajahn McBean, a/k/a “Jeezy Mula,” a/k/a “Freeze,” Karl Smith, a/k/a “Pacavell,” and Chelsey Harris, a/k/a “Ms. Chinn” were charged with luring a victim to various nightclubs in New York City, where McBean had arranged for gunmen to kill the victim. On December 26, 2023, multiple gunmen fired at the victim’s car, striking and killing the victim’s girlfriend Clarisa Burgos. Burgos was 28 years old. The charges against McBean, Smith, and Harris are pending.
- Trinitarios Gang Member Sentenced to Life in Prison for Murdering a Confidential Informant: In May 2024, William Jones, a/k/a “Principe,” was sentenced to life in prison following his October 2023 conviction for participating in the Trinitarios racketeering conspiracy, murder in aid of racketeering, and firearms offenses. On December 28, 2019, Jones murdered Frederick Delacruz in Suffolk County, New York, because Jones and fellow gang members had learned that Delacruz was acting as a confidential informant for law enforcement. Jones was a high-ranking member of the Trinitarios gang, which has engaged in a pattern of murder, attempted murder, drug trafficking, fraud, and witness tampering and retaliation.
- Latin Kings Leader Sentenced to Life Plus Seven Years in Prison for the 2017 Murder of Joshua Flores: In October 2021, Jonathan Garcia, a/k/a “Jayo,” a leader in the violent Black Mob Tribe of the Latin Kings gang, was charged with the murder of Joshua Flores as well as racketeering, firearms, and narcotics offenses. On May 18, 2017, Garcia brought a firearm to a meeting with other Latin Kings members with whom he had been arguing and who intended to revoke Garcia’s membership in the Latin Kings. During the meeting, next to a park and playground in Queens, Garcia shot at gang members as they fled, killing Joshua Flores. Garcia was convicted at trial in June 2023 and sentenced to life plus seven years in prison in April 2024.
- Prosecution of Stevenson Commons Crew Member for Double Homicide and Shooting of 16-Year-Old: In September 2023, Kai Johnson was sentenced to 40 years in prison after pleading guilty to a racketeering conspiracy, among other offenses. Johnson, a member of a gang known as the Stevenson Commons Crew, was charged for his participation in the murders of two brothers, Price Tunstall and Malik Tunstall, on August 31, 2021, and a non-fatal shooting of a 16-year-old on April 4, 2021. Both shootings occurred near the James Monroe Houses in the Bronx.
Violent Gangs and Racketeering Enterprises
- Prosecution of Sunset Trinitarios Leadership: In February 2023, Ediberto Santana, a/k/a “Flaco Veneno,” the longtime leader of the Sunset Trinitarios, was sentenced to life in prison after pleading guilty to racketeering conspiracy that included the October 23, 2013, murder of Michael Beltre and the November 17, 2013, murder of Rafael Alam. In September 2024, Carlos Ramirez, a/k/a “Guerra” was found guilty of racketeering conspiracy and murder in aid of racketeering, relating to Ramirez’s participation in the October 23, 2013, murder of Michael Beltre, and the November 2, 2014, murder of Jordanny Correa. Ramirez will be sentenced in March 2025.
- Prosecution of Leaders and Members of ABG Gang: In September 2022, 10 leaders and members of the ABG street gang in the Bronx were charged with racketeering conspiracy, drug trafficking, and firearms offenses, including the February 8, 2019, murder of Darren Scruggs in the Bronx. Henry Jones, a/k/a “Dew Man,” the leader of ABG, was sentenced to 30 years’ imprisonment in May 2024.
- Operator of Tow Truck and Auto Repair Company Charged with Racketeering Conspiracy and Murder: In October 2024, Christian Lugo, a/k/a “Coco” was charged with racketeering conspiracy, murder in aid of racketeering, and firearms offenses, relating to Lugo’s leadership role a racketeering conspiracy that used fraud and violent intimidation to run a tow truck and auto repair show known as Certified Auto. In February 2022, Lugo ordered a shooting of members of a rival tow truck company, which resulted in the death of Gloria Ortiz in February 2022. The charges against Lugo are pending.
- Prosecution of Leaders and Members of Washside Gang: In December 2022, 11 leaders and members of the Washside street gang were charged with racketeering conspiracy, violent crimes in aid of racketeering, and firearms offenses, including the June 26, 2020 murder of Tyrone Almodovar in the Bronx. Yaurel Centeno, a/k/a “Flex” was sentenced to 24 years’ imprisonment in January 2025.
- Double Nine Grim Reapers and Young Gunnaz Prosecutions : Members of the violent street gangs, the Double Nine Grim Reapers (“Grimz”) and The Young Gunnaz (“YG”) committed violent crimes extending from Newburgh to Poughkeepsie to Yonkers. In December 2022, fourteen leaders and members of the Grimz and thirty leaders, members, and associates of YG were charged with racketeering, narcotics, and firearm offenses. Across the two cases, the defendants were charged with eleven shootings, seven armed robberies, a long-running armed narcotics conspiracy, and a scheme to defraud New York State unemployment insurance programs of approximately $1.5 million worth of COVID-related benefits. James White, one of the leaders of the Grimz, was sentenced to 25 years in prison for his participation in the Grimz. YG member Raekwon Jackson, who was involved in a shooting, was sentenced to over 14 years in prison. The cases are ongoing.
- Prosecution of “Shooting Boys” Gang Members and Former NYPD Officer: In December 2023, former NYPD officer Gina Mestre pled guilty to accessory after the fact to murder, and in March 2024, she was sentenced to 70 months in prison, based on her obstruction of a federal grand jury investigation into the Shooting Boys gang, including the investigation of a murder committed by gang member Andrew Done, a/k/a “Caballo.” For his part, Done pled guilty to the November 5, 2020, murder of Angel Barreiro, and in February 2023, he was sentenced to 35 years in prison. In 2022, the Office brought charges against 10 individuals for their roles in the “Shooting Boys” gang and an associated narcotics conspiracy.
- Bloods Gang Member Convicted for Violent and Extortionate Takeover of the New York City Fire Mitigation Industry: In February 2024, Jatiek Smith was convicted of racketeering and extortion conspiracies in connection with his leadership of the violent takeover of the New York City fire mitigation industry. Smith joined an EMS company, First Response, and recruited members of the Bloods gang to help him take control of the company. Smith and his associates used violence, threats of violence, and extortion to terrorize and dominate the fire restoration industry in New York City, ousting any competitors and imposing rules to favor First Response. In June 2024, Smith was sentenced to 12 years in prison.
Shootings, Armed Robberies, and Firearms Trafficking
- Two Charged in Drug-Related Shooting on Bronx Street That Hit an 11-Month-Old Baby in the Face: In August 2023, Ahmed Altorei, a/k/a “AK,” and Samuel Bautista, a/k/a “Sammy,” were charged with distributing narcotics and carrying firearms in connection with a drug trafficking operation based on the Grand Concourse and East 198th Street in the Bronx, New York. In connection with those crimes, Altorei and Bautista were alleged to be involved in a street shooting on January 19, 2022, that targeted a rival drug dealer but resulted in an 11-month-old baby being shot in the face. The charges against Altorei and Bautista are pending.