10th Street Gang Associate Sentenced for his Role in Shooting

CONTACT:      Barbara Burns
PHONE:         (716) 843-5817
FAX:            (716) 551-3051

BUFFALO, N.Y.-U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul Jr. announced today that Luis Hernandez, age 26, of Buffalo, New York, who was convicted of discharging a firearm during a crime of violence, was sentenced to 10 years imprisonment by U.S. District Judge Richard J. Arcara.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph M. Tripi, who handled the case, stated that on April 17, 2006, the defendant assisted a group of 10th Street Gang members, who were looking to shoot rival 7th Street Gang members, by firing a shotgun at a group of people outside of a residence on Pennsylvania Street on the West Side of Buffalo.  On that date, the defendant was among a group of six (6) 10th Street Gang members and associates who were armed and fired shots at the victims.  During the shooting, the defendant possessed a shotgun and discharged this firearm in the general vicinity of the victims.  In total, dozens of shots were fired at the victims from the various firearms possessed by the defendant and other 10th Street Gang members and associates. Brandon MacDonald and Darinell Young were both shot and killed as a result of injuries sustained during the shooting. 

The defendant is the tenth (10) person convicted for his role in the shooting deaths of Brandon MacDonald and Darinell Young, and is the fifth (5) person to be sentenced.  The sentencing is the culmination of an investigation by the Buffalo Police Department, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York State Police, and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.