Buffalo Man Sentenced In Deadly Martin Luther King Park Shooting

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

BUFFALO, N.Y.—Acting U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. announced today that Tariq Brown, 23, of Buffalo, NY, who was convicted of RICO Conspiracy in connection with the May 12, 2012 shooting at Martin Luther King Park that left Marquay Lee dead and four other individuals wounded, was sentenced to 22 years in prison by Senior U.S. District Judge William M. Skretny. Two of the injured persons suffered permanent injuries, one victim is now a paraplegic and another was blinded in one eye.

According to Assistant U.S. Attorneys Meghan A. Tokash and Michael Felicetta, who handled the prosecution of this case, Brown is alleged to be a member of the Bailey Boys Gang, a violent criminal gang which operates in an area of the City of Buffalo bounded by Winspear Avenue, the Kensington Expressway, Eggert Road and Main Street. The defendant Brown already stands accused of three other attempted murders which injured two people.

As a result of the ongoing investigation into the Bailey Boys Gang, members now stand accused of four murders, 14 attempted murders, including four drive-by shootings. The attempted murders include a shooting that occurred during a neighborhood party with numerous children present and a shooting that occurred during a robbery. A total of 11 were arrested and to date, seven defendants have been convicted. The fact that a defendant has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.               

The sentencing is the result of an ongoing investigation on the part of the United States Attorney’s Office in close cooperation with the Erie County District Attorney’s Office, under the direction of Acting District Attorney Michael Flaherty, the Buffalo Police Department, under direction of Police Commissioner Daniel Derenda, the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Safe Streets Task Force, under the Direction of Special Agent in Charge Adam S. Cohen, the Erie County Sheriff’s Office, under the direction of Sheriff Timothy B. Howard, the Drug Enforcement Administration, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge James J. Hunt, New York Field Division, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Ashan Benedict, New York Field Division.