Subscribe PART OF AUDACY NEWS. A leader of the Vice Lords street gang was sentenced today to 162 months in prison for his role in the May 7, 2015, shooting of four members of a family with an AK-47 in Detroit. In recent years, more than 100 people have been charged with racketeering conspiracy punishable by up to life in prison as Detroit police and federal investigators tried to curtail violent crime in Detroit. Detroit Federal agents Thursday arrested more than three dozenmembers and associates of the Almighty Vice Lord Nation street gangin an attempt to stem the rise of gun violence in one of the nation's most dangerous cities. The defendants admitted that the Vice Lords leaders are located in Chicago and Detroit and that the gang is broken down into various sets, decks or branches. Members who seek to leave the gang oftentimes endure a physical beating by multiple Vice Lord members or are targeted for killing. King; Fabian Toodle, a.k.a Noodle; Earnest Lee, a.k.a. The firearm charge carries a mandatory minimum sentence of ten years in prison. Veterans can also contact the Education Call Center at 888-442-4551 between 7 a.m. - 6 p.m. EST, Monday-Friday to speak with a VA . Counts 2 and 3 charge assault with a dangerous in aid of racketeering, while counts 4 and 5 charge drug conspiracies. the member wrote. Anyone with any information about Smiths whereabouts is encouraged to call 313-234-5656. WASHINGTONThe National President of the Phantom Outlaw Motorcycle Club and "Three-Star General" of the Vice Lords street gang in Michigan was sentenced today to serve 35 years in prison for. The charges are the result of the collaborative efforts of law enforcement and the community to reduce homicide and other violent crime under the Detroit One program, which has led to the arrests and convictions of Vice Lords leaders during this past year. Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy. "We can advance, they can lock us up or we can end up dead," the gang's alleged chiefenforcer Davun Baskerville said in a recorded 2019 phone call, according to the indictment. On Thursday, January 25, 2016, Kojuan Lee, aka Juan, 20, of Detroit, and Jonathan Kinchen, aka Deago, 22, of Detroit, each pleaded guilty to one count of RICO conspiracy. The 172-page indictment lists 40 members and associates of the Almighty Vice Lord Nation, a national gang out of Chicago with a prominent branch in Detroit. The Vice Lords are a violent, armed national street gang operating in Detroit, Chicago and elsewhere, acting U.S. Attorney Saima Mohsin said at a news conference Thursday. Kenneth Smith is currently a fugitive. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites. Hes 51, he has no record. P and Marty; Tamar Watkins, a.k.a. Officials say Thursdays indictment comes after a three-year investigation that led to the arrests. Detroit resident Kevin "Spaghetti" Fordham, 51, deserved to be jailed indefinitely, said U.S. Magistrate Judge Kimberly Altman, citing recorded phone calls and social media posts portraying him. Among those eight convicted defendants was Antonio Johnson, aka MT or MisterTony, the National President of the Phantoms and the Three-Star General over the Vice Lords in Michigan. The indictment charged these Vice Lords members with aiding and abetting one another in the shooting of the four family members after firing more than two dozen times at the family. "Violent crime rates continue to rise, and with summer upon us, that is likely to continue to rise," Acting U.S. Attorney Saima Mohsin told reporters. Civil rights complaints may also be made online at this linkusamie.civilrights@usdoj.gov. Copyright 2021 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. The case is being investigated by the ATFs Comprehensive Violence Reduction Program, which includes representatives of the Detroit Police, Michigan State Police, and Michigan Department of Corrections, in coordination with the FBI and DEA. Dion Robinson, aka Doggy, 37, of Detroit, is charged with assault with a dangerous weapon in aid of racketeering, and use and carry of firearms during and in relation to a crime of violence. A 39-count federal indictment was unsealed . Law enforcement executed search warrants at several locations in Detroit. DETROIT - A few dozen alleged members and associates of the Almighty Vice Lord Nation gang will now be facing a slew of charges in an investigation that's been underway for years. A 171-page indictment carries a total of 39 counts against 40 alleged members that include RICO, conspiracy gun, and drug charges. In another recorded call in September 2017, Fordham is accused of discussing gang operations and discipline with an inmate. Serve Detroit connects meaningful service opportunities with willing and dedicated volunteers. The charges relating to the May 7, 2015, shooting of the four family members are one component of the federal governments prosecution of the Vice Lords street gang, which has led to the arrests and convictions of Vice Lords leaders and members over several years. A leader of the Vice Lords street gang was sentenced today to 20 years in prison for attempted murder in aid of racketeering in connection with the May 7 . Kenneth Smith is currently a fugitive. The indictment, which also includes drug and firearms charges, is amongthe largest racketeering conspiracy cases in federal court history in Detroit. Our Civil Rights hotline is available for anyone who may have suffered a violation of their civil rights. The 39-count indictment was announced by Acting United States Attorney Saima Mohsin on Thursday. RELATED: Feds make a dent in Vice Lords gang arrests but 4 still being sought. According to the indictment, the Vice Lords is a national gang engaged in a variety of crimes, including murder, robbery, narcotics trafficking and witness intimidation. Trial Attorney Joseph Wheatley of the Criminal Divisions Organized Crime and Gang Section and Assistant U.S. Thursdays gang arrests are part of what are expected to be several upcoming crackdowns on violent crime in Detroit, which has seen a nearly 50% increase in homicides since 2019, according to the News. The charges relating to the May 7, 2015, shooting of the four family members are one component of the federal governments prosecution of the Vice Lords street gang, which has led to the arrests and convictions of Vice Lords leaders and members over several years. Today, a federal jury in Detroit convicted two members of the violent Phantom Outlaw Motorcycle Club, one of whom also was a member of the Vice Lords street gang, on separate crimes of. The indictment alleges that the shooting was prompted by two of the family members attempts to leave the gang. In May 2015, state and federal law enforcement carried out a roundup of six Detroit-area Vice Lord gang members accused of attacking the family of a . The Detroit ATF urges anyone with information regarding the mens' whereabouts to contact them. Serve Detroit is a Mayor's Office initiative dedicated to promoting service and volunteerism in the city of Detroit. Six Detroit Vice Lords Gang Members Plead Guilty to Racketeering Conspiracy and Gang-Related Shootings WASHINGTON - Six members of the Vice Lords gang in Detroit pleaded guilty this week to various racketeering and firearms offenses based on their roles in the gang-related shooting of four individuals. FBI.gov is an official site of the U.S. Department of Justice. 38 of the people charged in the indictment are in police custody, while the other two remain on the loose, according to a report. At Large Handout (1) by WXYZ-TV Channel 7 Detroit on Scribd. Prosecutors said they fear gang violence following last week's unsealing of a 172-page indictment against 40 Vice Lords members and associates who are accused of committing murder, drug deals, extortion, stabbings and plotting hits oninmates in the Michigan Department of Corrections since 2012. In one recorded phone call in May 2019, high-ranking leader Terry Douglas was overheard taking credit for arranging the assault of a fellow prisoner, prosecutors said. (WDIV) 40 charged in sweeping indictment involving Chicago-Detroit gang known as . Chief Fatah, the leader of the Michigan branch of the Mafia Insane Vice Lords, was sentenced to almost 29 years in prison for his role in helping plan an armed robbery of a Little Caesars restaurant in Redford, Michigan, in September 2013. Check back with FOX 2 for more details, This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. William Frazier "Daytona". Give Light and the People Will Find Their Own Way, Feds make a dent in Vice Lords gang arrests but 4 still being sought, 3 members of Almighty Vice Lords Nation gang from metro Detroit charged with drug, weapons crimes. "They either get in tune or get tuned up, that's it," Fordham said, according to the indictment. The government is throwing all this dirt up against the wall, saying lets hold him, Sabbota said. According to the U.S Attorney's . Twon; Anthony Zigler, a.k.a. Investigators say this three-year investigation saved lives. Detroit resident Kevin "Spaghetti" Fordham, 51, deserved to be jailed indefinitely, said U.S. Magistrate Judge Kimberly Altman, citing recorded phone calls and social media posts portraying him as a gun-toting drug dealer who headeda 600-member armyin Michigan and other states. Serve Detroit engages residents, community leaders, and nonprofit and corporate entities to come together for the common goal of Serving Detroit. The indictment also details several crimes like murder, robbery, assault, and other violent crimes, as well as drug-related offenses that took place over the last 10 years. On Jan. 27, 2016, Clark pleaded guilty to two counts of attempted murder in aid of racketeering and one count of using and carrying of a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence. >>> LISTEN LIVE! On January 25, 2016, Aramis Wilson, aka Ace, 25, of Detroit, pleaded guilty to two counts of Assault with a Dangerous Weapon in Aid of Racketeering, and one count of Use and Carry of a Firearm During, and in Relation to, a Crime of Violence. "We shot they b---- asses," said Baskerville in one recorded phone call, according to the indictment. "The quality of life in our community will remain closely aligned to our successful ongoing collective efforts to remove violent offenders from Detroit's streets.". Vice Lord street gangs use a variety symbols to identify themselves, including a rabbit wearing a bow tie (the Playboy logo), often stylized with top hat and cane. RELATED: Feds target Vice Lords street gang with racketeering indictment. Midget; Lawon Carter, a.k.a. DETROIT (FOX 2) - In one of the largest racketeering and conspiracy busts in Detroit's history, 40 members of the Detroit gang Almighty Vice Lords have been arrested on charges ranging from murder to drug trafficking, and weapons. The four men are Aaron Knight, Anthony Reynolds, John Johnson and. These Vice Lord members first met at Kenneth Smiths house to discuss their plans. The seven Vice Lord members charged with crimes stemming from this incident are . The Almighty Vice Lord Nation gang was founded in Chicago in the 1960s. The unemployed forklift driver's detention comes amid allegations Fordham's own men wantto kill him as part of an internal power struggle that prosecutors fear could lead to bloodshed in Detroit and beyond. The national gang was founded in Chicago in the 1960s and operates several branches in Michigan that are overseen by a governing board that is empowered to order hits on people. The indictment unsealed Thursday focuses on Vice Lord leaders and their associates within Michigan and Chicago, according to Mohsin. Fordham is unlike many of his codefendants. And for gang members who believe that you are protected from the law, were coming for you, too.. The announcement was made by Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Departments Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Barbara L. 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