TonioTimeDaily

“Ten members of a Southwest Washington street gang that authorities said has terrorized a housing complex for a decade with homicides, shootings and armed kidnappings have been indicted for their alleged participation in a "violent marijuana distribution conspiracy," U.S. Attorney Wilma A. Lewis said yesterday. The defendants -- all males ages 22 to 35 -- were indicted on 87 counts of racketeering and narcotics-related charges, including allegations that gang members killed two people who were government witnesses against the group. The federal indictment was unsealed yesterday. The joint federal-local investigation focused on violence spawned by the marijuana sales at the Greenleaf Gardens housing complex in Southwest. The men charged yesterday were members of the K Street Crew, a neighborhood gang that waged feuds with rival drug gangs, such as the L Street Crew, whose federal racketeering trial is scheduled for January. At a news conference yesterday, standing beside a chart that listed the names of 31 victims of shootings -- including 13 homicides -- attributed to the K Street Crew, Lewis said: "This is a clear example of why marijuana use and dealing cannot -- I repeat, cannot -- simply be viewed as a harmless activity or a victimless crime." Prosecutors said the K Street Crew carried out at least 13 killings from 1989 to 1996, as well as numerous shootings, robberies and other crimes. The victims were not limited to rival gang members or people who did not pay drug debts, according to the 77-page indictment. Crew members staked out the area surrounding the 200 block of K Street SW as their territory, authorities said. To protect themselves and their business, they carried semiautomatic weapons and often wore bulletproof vests, investigators said.” --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/antonio-myers4/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/antonio-myers4/support