U.S. Department of Labor OIG, Thirty Individuals Associated with Milwaukee Street Gang Charged With Federal Offenses Ranging from Fraud to Murder for Hire (USAO ED-WI 05/10/2023) (2023-05-11)
Summary
A press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office, Eastern District of Wisconsin, dated May 10, 2023, announcing that 30 individuals alleged to be members and affiliates of a Milwaukee street gang known as the Wild 100s, the Shark Gang or SNG were charged in a 43-count indictment. Count One charges a mail fraud conspiracy, alleging that the conspirators obtained millions of federal dollars through false applications for Pandemic Unemployment Assistance and other unemployment insurance benefits and used the funds for firearms, controlled substances, jewelry, vacations and murder for hire. Count Twenty-Seven alleges that Ronnell Bowman and Ronnie Jackson arranged a murder in exchange for money, and Count Twenty-Eight alleges a firearm discharge on or about April 5, 2021 resulting in a death. Other counts charge firearms and drug offenses.
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“U.S. Department of Labor OIG, Thirty Individuals Associated with Milwaukee Street Gang Charged With Federal Offenses Ranging from Fraud to Murder for Hire (USAO ED-WI 05/10/2023) (2023-05-11).”
Original at www.oig.dol.gov. Archived at Pandemic Darlings, https://pandemicdarlings.com/source-documents/u-s-department-of-labor-oig-thirty-individuals-associated-with-milwauk-66fca1dad3/
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PRESS RELEASE
Thirty Individuals Associated with
Milwaukee Street Gang Charged
With Federal Offenses Ranging
from Fraud to Murder for Hire
Wednesday, May 10, 2023
For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, Eastern District of Wisconsin
Gregory J. Haanstad, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Wisconsin,
announced today that 30 individuals – all alleged to be members and affiliates of a
Milwaukee street gang known as the “Wild 100s,” the “Shark Gang,” or “SNG” – had
been charged in a 43-count indictment returned by a federal grand jury. The charges
include mail fraud conspiracy (Count 1), mail fraud (Counts 2 through 26), murder for
hire (Count 27), discharging a firearm during a crime of violence (Count 28), conspiracy
to commit offenses related to the possession and sale of firearms (Count 29), unlawful
possession of firearms by felons (Counts 30, 31, 32, 35, 36, 39, 42, & 43), possession with
intent to distribute controlled substances (Counts 33 & 40); possession of a firearm in
furtherance of drug trafficking (Counts 34 & 41), possession of a machinegun (Count
37), and possession of a firearm by a fugitive from justice (Count 38).
The indictment has been unsealed as to the following twenty-seven defendants, while
the charges against three other defendants remain sealed pending their arrests:
Name Age Counts
RONNELL BOWMAN 29 1, 2, 27, 28, 29
MICHAEL ANDERSON 26 1, 3, 29, 38
JOEL BLAKE 24 1, 4
BYRON CLAYPOOL 24 1, 5
JAVONTE COTTON 28 1, 7, 29, 32, 33, 34
LADARIUS DAVIS-
22 1, 8
HUGHES
LARRY ECHOLS 24 1, 10
DEMETRIUS EXUM 22 1, 11, 29
LARRY HAMILTON 31 1, 12, 29
VERNELL HAMILTON 29 1, 13
AKEEM HUDSON 32 1, 14
RONNIE JACKSON 23 1, 27, 28, 29
CALVIN KIDD 28 1, 15
MARCUS MALBRO 28 1, 7
DEAUTRIS MATTISON 26 1, 16
QUEVON MCKINNIE 25 1, 29, 42
CHASE NANEZ 22 1, 17
ANDREW PORTIS 30 1, 18
MAURICE RITTMAN 30 1, 19, 29, 30
RAMON SAVAGE 27 1, 20, 29, 35
TIMOTHY SCOTT 30 1, 21
KEORIE SMITH 26 1, 22, 29, 36, 43
KEJUAUN THOMAS 22 1, 29
LAWRENCE TURNER 29 1, 23
CHAZZ WHITE 32 1, 24, 29, 39, 40, 41
JALEN WILLIAMS 23 1, 25, 29
JAQUAN WRIGHT 22 1, 26, 29, 31
Regarding the mail fraud conspiracy charged in Count One, the indictment alleges that
the named defendants conspired to defraud the Department of Labor through the
submission of false and fraudulent applications for benefits under programs such as the
Pandemic Unemployment Assistance Program and other unemployment insurance
programs. The indictment alleges that the conspirators wrongfully obtained millions of
federal dollars through their fraudulent activities and used the funds to purchase,
among other things, firearms, controlled substances, jewelry, and vacations, and to
solicit murder for hire. Counts Two through Twenty-Six allege substantive mail fraud
offenses relating to specific mailings of debit cards related to the fraudulent
applications. Counts One through Twenty-Six each carry a maximum term of
imprisonment of 20 years.
Regarding the alleged murder for hire, Count Twenty-Seven alleges that between on or
about March 15, 2021, and April 5, 2021, Ronnell Bowman and Ronnie Jackson used
facilities in interstate commerce to arrange the murder of N.B. in exchange for the
payment of money. Count Twenty-Eight alleges that on or about April 5, 2021, these
same two defendants used, carried, and discharged a firearm in furtherance of the
murder for hire, resulting in the death of N.B. As charged, Counts Twenty-Seven and
Twenty-Eight each carry a maximum penalty of up to life in prison, and Count Twenty-
Eight carries a mandatory minimum sentence of ten years.
Regarding the conspiracy charged in Count Twenty-Nine, the indictment alleges that
between approximately July 2020 and April 21, 2023, the fifteen defendants named in
that count conspired to: (1) sell and dispose of firearms to prohibited persons (such as
felons); (2) transfer firearms knowing that the firearms would be used to commit a crime
of violence or drug trafficking crime; (3) possess and transfer machine guns; and (4)
possess firearms as prohibited persons. This offense carries a prison sentence of up to
five years.
With the exception of Counts Thirty-Four and Forty-One, which allege offenses
punishable by a minimum of five years and up to life in prison, the remaining counts
carry maximum penalties of up to 5 or 10 years depending on the specific offense
charged.
Multiple defendants named in the indictment in this case were arrested earlier today as
a result of law enforcement operations in Milwaukee, Houston, and elsewhere.
“Every resident of the Eastern District of Wisconsin deserves to live in a safe and secure
neighborhood, free from groups which engage in violent offenses and other crimes
involving firearms and free from individuals who seek to defraud programs designed to
help others simply to enrich themselves and fund other crimes,” said United States
Attorney Haanstad. “Today’s charges are the direct result of hard work and excellent
collaboration between our federal, state, and local law enforcement partners, all of
whom are dedicated to making the City of Milwaukee and the entire Eastern District a
safer and better place in which to live and work.”
“The arrests today are outstanding examples of the sustained and successful
collaboration between federal and local law enforcement agencies to combat both
significant violent and financial crime in Milwaukee,” said Special Agent in Charge
Michael E. Hensle. “Additionally, the charges represent the commitment of the
government to hold those accountable who steal the money of law-abiding taxpayers
for personal gain and for use in committing acts of violent crime. The FBI’s Milwaukee
Area Safe Streets Task Force along with our partners will continue to identify and disrupt
criminal organizations which threaten the safety of our communities with the goal to
make Milwaukee a safer place for everyone.”
“Law enforcement partnerships among agencies at the local, state, and federal level
proved effective in both investigating and charging these individuals responsible for
these violent and senseless crimes,” commented ATF Special Agent in Charge
Christopher Amon of the Chicago Field Division. “I commend the United States
Attorney’s office for their leadership and commitment to the community of Milwaukee,
the victims of these tragedies.”
“An important part of the mission of the Office of Inspector General is to investigate
allegations of fraud related to unemployment insurance programs. We will continue to
work with our law enforcement partners to aggressively investigate these types of
allegations,” said Irene Lindow, Special Agent in Charge, Great Lakes Region, U.S.
Department of Labor Office of Inspector General.
“The Milwaukee Police Department is committed to working with our community, local,
state and federal partners to combat violent crime. We are extremely proud of the
dedication and hard work of the members of MPD, FBI, ATF, the U.S. Attorney’s Office
and the other law enforcement agencies that collaborated to arrest and indict several
members of the Wild 100’s on very serious criminal charges. Our city is much safer due
to the all the efforts of everyone involved,” said Milwaukee Police Chief Jeffrey Norman.
The defendants were charged based on joint investigation by law enforcement officers
from FBI, ATF, Department of Labor-Office of Inspector General (DOL-OIG), and the
Milwaukee Police Department (MPD). This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United
States Attorneys Laura Kwaterski and Peter Smyczek.
Multiple law enforcement agencies participated in the arrests and execution of search
warrants related to the case, including FBI, ATF, DOL-OIG, MPD, the Milwaukee County
Sheriff’s Department, Wisconsin State Patrol, Wisconsin Department of Justice-Division
of Criminal Investigation, Cudahy Police Department, Oak Creek Police Department,
Washington County Sheriff’s Department, Brown Deer Police Department, West Allis
Police Department, Glendale Police Department, Houston (Texas) Police Department,
Montgomery County (Texas) Sheriff’s Department, and the Harris County (Texas)
Sheriff’s Department.
The public is cautioned that an indictment is merely a charge and each defendant is
presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
## #
For Additional Information Contact:
Public Information Officer Kenneth.Gales@usdoj.gov
414-297-1700
Updated May 10, 2023
Component
USAO - Wisconsin, Eastern
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