Page 2 - Florida Sentinel 1-27-17

Gang Sentenced
Federal Judge Hands Down 19 Life Sentences To Gang Members
Last week a federal judge handed down 19 life sen- tences to five gang members. The men were charged with several crimes that took place in Bradenton.
Judge Elizabeth A. Ko- vachevich sentenced five of the six men to more than one life sentence. The sixth man was given more than 100 years in prison.
They were sentenced for their roles in wide-ranging racketeering and drug distri- bution conspiracies. The crimes included seven mur- ders, three kidnappings, nu- merous firearms and drug offenses, and related criminal conduct.
They were found guilty September 8, 2016, by a jury after a three-month trial.
Judge Kovachevich
handed down the following sentences:
Corey Harris, 26, aka “James,” was sentenced to 120 years in federal prison for drug trafficking and distribu- tion of crack cocaine.
for being a felon in possession of ammunition.
Nathaniel Harris and Napoleon Harris were also ordered to pay $8,000 resti- tution to the family of Demetrius Cunningham.
Charlie Green, 30, aka “Mr. 30N32,” was sen- tenced to 5 life terms for the murders of Joseph Evans and Ceola Lazier, racket- eering, armed kidnapping, and drug conspiracy.
Jerry Green, 30, aka “Jerk,” was sentenced to 4 life terms for the murders of Ceola Lazier and Carlos Jurado, racketeering, and drug conspiracy.
tempted murder, kidnapping, robbery, and drug trafficking. The group was first indicted in 2013.
According to court docu- ments, the group is accused of killing at least nine people. Among those murdered were:
Christopher Demetrious ham, Calvin Ceola Lazier, Carlos Ju- rado, Brenton Coleman, Joseph Evans, Rodney D. Lamb, and Erika Williams.
Brenton Coleman, 39, was murdered at the 13th Av- enue Recreation Center, known as the Dream Center, in front of a crowd of young children and their parents who were attending football practice, officials said.
Officials said Coleman, was holding his 5-year-old child when he was shot exe- cution style. The child was not injured in August 2013.
The gang kept a number of so-called “trap houses” that were used to distribute co- caine, cocaine base, MDMA, oxycodone and marijuana, and used extreme violence to collect drug debts and enforce its control of the drug traf- ficking in its territory.
They also threatened members of the community to keep them from testifying against them in court, offi- cials stated in court docu- ments.
In addition to these 6 members of the gang, an ad- ditional 12 members and co- conspirators have already pleaded guilty to drug traf- ficking, firearms, and other offenses in connection with this case, officials said.
Jenkins, Cunning- Barnes,
Nathaniel Harris, 25, aka “Popo,” was sentenced to 4 life terms for the murders of Demetrius Cunning- ham and Calvin Barnes, and racketeering and drug trafficking conspiracy.
In addition, he was sen- tenced to consecutive terms ranging from 10 to 25 years’ imprisonment for attempted murder, armed kidnapping, and drug and firearms of- fenses.
Napoleon Harris, 32, aka “Pole,” was given 3 life terms for the murder of Demetrius Cunningham, racketeering, and drug con- spiracy. He was also sen- tenced to 10 years in prison
Deonte Martin, 27, aka “Tang,” was sentenced to 3 life terms for the murder of Brenton Coleman, racket- eering, and drug trafficking conspiracy. He also received additional sentences ranging from 10 to 30 years for firearms and drug charges.
According to evidence presented at the trial, the men were members of a rack- eteering enterprise that con- trolled illicit drug distribution and committed murders-for- hire in and around Braden- ton.
Beginning in 2006 and continuing through 2014, the men were responsible for murdering 7 people, includ- ing one victim who was gunned down at a community center in front of hundreds of children and their parents.
The racketeering enter- prise attempted to murder another man. He survived, but is paralyzed and confined to a wheelchair.
The six were indicted in June 2014. U. S. Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III, announced the unsealing of a twenty- eight count, second supersed- ing indictment charging them for their roles in a serious of crimes involving murder, at-
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