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Press Release
A 35-count, second superseding indictment was unsealed today in federal court in Brooklyn charging Darrius Sutton, also known as “Blizz Meecho,” Trava Selby, also known as “Stoney,” Andrew Simpson, also known was “Drewski,” Tyshawn Sumpter, also known as “GT,” Ronnie Warren, also known as “Bossman Horse,” and Corey Williams, also known as “Moncler Mellz,” with racketeering conspiracy, violent crimes in-aid-of racketeering—including attempted murder and murder conspiracy—firearms offenses, drug-dealing and fraud. As alleged in the indictment, the defendants were members and associates of a violent East New York gang called “Bamalife,” which has ongoing and violent rivalries with other gangs in East New York and elsewhere in Brooklyn. Simpson and Warren were arrested earlier today and will be arraigned this afternoon before United States Magistrate Judge Sanket J. Bulsara. Selby, who is presently in New York State custody, and Sutton, Sumpter and Williams who are already in federal custody on related charges, will be arraigned at a later date. During Simpson’s arrest in Edison, New Jersey, members of law enforcement recovered a Glock handgun with an extended ammunition clip from the defendant’s pants.
Breon Peace, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, Michael J. Driscoll, Assistant Director-in-Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office (FBI), Jonathan Mellone, Special Agent-in-Charge, U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General, New York Region (DOL-OIG), and Keechant L. Sewell, Commissioner, New York City Police Department (NYPD), announced the arrests and charges.
“As alleged in the superseding indictment, the defendants wreaked havoc in East New York and nearby neighborhoods, with innocent bystanders caught in the crossfire as members of Bamalife carried out senseless violence directed against rival gangs,” stated United States Attorney Peace. “This Office, together with our law enforcement partners, are working tirelessly to protect our communities by dismantling criminal enterprises that are engines of a broad range of crimes, taking the violent gang members off the street and stopping the cycle of gun-related violence.”
“Gang members and their rivals aren’t the only ones affected by the hostility they inflict upon themselves. In this case specifically, as we allege, the defendants’ activity threatened the safety and security of the residents of East New York, who deserve to walk their streets without the fear of violence. Today’s charges should send a message that the FBI remains committed to strengthening our communities by eliminating this type of illegal activity.” stated FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge Driscoll.
“The Unemployment Insurance Program exists to provide needed assistance to qualified individuals who are unemployed due to no fault of their own. Fraud against the Unemployment Insurance Program distracts state workforce agencies from ensuring benefits go to individuals who are eligible to receive them. The Office of Inspector General will continue to work closely with our many law enforcement partners to investigate those who exploit the Unemployment Insurance Program,” stated DOL-OIG Special Agent-in-Charge Mellone.
“Today’s charges further illustrate our unwavering commitment to dismantling violent gangs while taking illegal guns off our streets,” said NYPD Commissioner Sewell. “We use every resource available to keep our neighborhoods safe, and any person who puts New Yorkers at risk must be held accountable to the fullest extent of the law. I want to thank the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York, the FBI’s New York Field Office, the Office of the Inspector General’s New York Regional Office, and all the investigators involved in this important case.”
As alleged in the indictment and other court filings, the defendants are charged in connection with six non-fatal shootings in East New York and elsewhere in Brooklyn that wounded 12 individuals. Also as alleged in the indictment, the defendants financed their violent shooting spree through drug-dealing and various forms of fraud, including bank fraud and unemployment benefits fraud.
The August 11, 2019 Shooting
As alleged, on August 11, 2019, Sutton accosted a member of a rival gang after a party in East New York. Sutton demanded to know if the victim was a member of the rival gang and then began shooting and pursuing the intended victim as the victim attempted to flee. Sutton struck and seriously injured his intended target and also struck an innocent bystander in the leg.
The April 20, 2020 Shooting
As alleged, on April 20, 2020, Sutton ambushed a male victim in the vicinity of 375 Sheffield Avenue in East New York, Brooklyn. Surveillance video shows Sutton approaching the victim undetected from behind, drawing his weapon, firing several shots and striking the victim in the chest, thigh and wrist before fleeing the scene. Following Sutton’s arrest on federal charges for this shooting, Warren took images of Sutton shooting his victim that were part of a court filing and posted them to Instagram with the message: “MY BOY GREAT.”
The May 16, 2020 Shooting
As alleged, on May 16, 2020, Sutton and Sumpter, together with others, shot and seriously injured a member of a rival gang in the vicinity of 2211 Pitkin Avenue in East New York, Brooklyn. Surveillance video of the shooting shows two cars pulling up to a location approximately four blocks from the shooting. Sutton exited one of the cars and approached 2211 Pitkin Avenue, where members of a rival gang are known to congregate, while Sumpter and other coconspirators waited in the vehicle. Surveillance video from inside the building shows Sutton in the lobby holding a firearm. Moments later, Sutton shot the rival in the courtyard of 2211 Pitkin Avenue, ran back to the waiting vehicles, and fled the scene.
The July 14, 2020 Shooting
As alleged in the indictment, on July 14, 2020, Sutton, Sumpter, and others opened fire on a member of a rival gang member in the vicinity of 620 Vermont Avenue in East New York. Video surveillance footage of the shooting shows Sutton, Sumpter and others arrive at the scene in two cars. Sutton and Sumpter exited one of the vehicles and began shooting, striking the rival gang member and seriously injuring him. Sutton, Sumpter, and several other individuals then ran back to the waiting vehicles, which sped off.
The February 6, 2021 Shooting
As alleged in the indictment, on February 6, 2021, Sumpter shot at a group of individuals outside a six-year old’s birthday party in the vicinity of 1093 Putnam Avenue in Brooklyn, after a member of Bamalife had an altercation with those individuals at the party. Video surveillance footage shows Sumpter outside the entrance to the party as guests, including young children, were leaving. The surveillance footage shows a group of individuals running from the scene and shows Sumpter chasing after them while firing several shots. Following the shooting, Sumpter fled in a waiting vehicle.
The August 16, 2021 Shooting
As alleged in the indictment, on August 16, 2021, Simpson and at least two accomplices shot into a crowd outside of 927 Dekalb Avenue in Brooklyn, striking eight individuals. Video surveillance of the incident shows Simpson and his accomplices double-park near the scene of the shooting, after which two of the conspirators approached the large crowd gathered in the courtyard and began firing. The shooters returned to the waiting vehicle and sped off.
Murder Conspiracies
As alleged in the indictment, from 2014 to the present, Sutton, Simpson, Sumpter and Williams conspired to murder members and associates of another East New York-based gang and beginning in 2016, Sutton, Selby, Simpson, Warren and Williams conspired to murder John Doe 1, in part in retaliation for an incident in which Warren was shot. In the course of the conspiracy, Warren released a rap song and accompanying video in which Warren and other members of Bamalife can be heard shouting that John Doe 1 and his girlfriend are “going to die together.”
Bank Fraud and other Fraudulent Schemes
As alleged in the indictment, members of Bamalife earned money through illicit means, including various fraud schemes. As alleged, in June 2019, Warren and Williams engaged in a scheme to create and deposit fraudulent checks drawn on bank accounts of unwitting victims. Warren and Williams used information from victims’ bank accounts to create fraudulent checks, which they deposited into the account of co-conspirators in order to obtain funds. Williams bragged on social media about the proceeds of his fraud schemes. For example, on July 9, 2021, he posted the following to his Instagram account with the username “darealmonclermellz”: “I just spent 80k last week like it was nothing.”
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. The Department of Justice reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally-based strategies to reduce violent crime.
The charges in the indictments are allegations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
The government’s case is being handled by the Office’s Organized Crime and Gangs Section. Assistant United States Attorneys Kevin Trowel and Nick M. Axelrod are in charge of the prosecution.
The Defendants:
DARRIUS SUTTON (also known as “Blizz Meecho”)
Age: 24
Brooklyn, New York
TRAVA SELBY (also known as “Stoney”)
Age: 27
Brooklyn, New York
ANDREW SIMPSON (also known as “Drewski”)
Age: 24
Brooklyn, New York
TYSHAWN SUMPTER (also known as “GT”)
Age: 28
Brooklyn, New York
Ronnie warren (also known as “Bossman Horse”)
Age: 25
Hoboken, New Jersey
Corey williams (also known as “Moncler Mellz”)
Age: 27
Rembert, South Carolina
E.D.N.Y. Docket No. 20-CR-323 (S-2) (AMD)
John Marzulli
Danielle Blustein Hass
United States Attorney’s Office
(718) 254-6323