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(NEW YORK) — A successful rapper used earnings from his music career to promote gun violence in Brooklyn, New York, prosecutors alleged Tuesday.
Michael Williams, known as Sheff G, is among 32 purported street gang members charged Tuesday in a series of shootings in Brooklyn that left one person dead and a dozen more injured.
According to the indictment, the defendants are all members of 8 Trey Crips and its affiliate, the 9 Ways gang, and allegedly committed shootings, possessed guns and used stolen cars to eliminate rivals that included members of Folk Nation Gangster Disciples and ICG Babiiez.
The indictment covers 27 alleged acts of violence, including 12 shootings.
“The senseless gun violence, allegedly committed by these defendants, terrorized our neighbors for years and left more than a dozen people with serious injuries. It is distressing to know that some of the violence was allegedly fueled by a young man who used money he made from a successful music career to allegedly pay for and encourage acts of violence,” Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez said.
Williams offered money and expensive jewelry to those who carried out acts of violence, prosecutors said.
The indictment also outlined one shooting in which Williams allegedly coordinated a group of three shooters, drove those shooters to the crime scene, and then acted as the getaway driver.
Williams was expected to appear in court on Tuesday. It was not immediately clear who his attorney is.
One of the charges stems from a mass shooting on Oct. 21, 2020, where one defendant, Kamondre Dekattu, is allegedly captured on surveillance video emerging from the sunroof of a white Infiniti and opening fire while other individuals fired guns from the driver’s side and rear driver’s side windows.
An alleged Folk Nation rival, Theodore Senior, 23, was killed and five other alleged Folk Nation members were shot and injured.
Dekattu is charged with the murder and his co-conspirators, including Williams and his sister, Crystal Williams, are charged with being part of the conspiracy to commit murder, for this incident and others.
Two days after the homicide, Michael Williams allegedly hosted a lavish dinner with his fellow 8 Trey Crips and 9 Ways members, including Tegan Chambers, at a Manhattan steakhouse to celebrate the death of Theodore Senior and the injuries of the five other shooting victims.
“Sheff G became a prominent member of this gang and became central to our investigation,” Gonzalez said during a news conference. “Sheff G used a lot of the money that he earned to facilitate further gang activity. He encouraged gang members to participate in violent crimes.”
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