Brooklyn District Attorney Ken Thompson, together with New York City Police Commissioner William J. Bratton and Mayor Bill de Blasio, announced Wednesday that 18 alleged members of No Love City, a subset of the violent Folk Nation street gang, have been variously charged in a 76-count indictment with conspiracy to commit murder, weapons possession and other charges for multiple shootings throughout Brooklyn, including one that left a 25-year-old man dead and another that left a 60-year-old woman paralyzed.
Thompson said, “We must never allow violent street gangs to take over and terrorize our communities by going on hunting expeditions and roaming our streets shooting and killing people at will. This indictment makes clear that we will not cede our streets to armed criminals, but will do everything in our power to keep our streets safe for all.”
Bratton said, “These defendants are not just crew members, but part of a criminal enterprise that has been responsible for a significant amount of the violence which has plagued the Flatbush and Canarsie sections of Brooklyn over the last two years. I commend the investigators and prosecutors who developed a substantial case against this group.”
De Blasio said, “The Gun Violence Suppression Division is using state-of-the-art policing to successfully investigate, arrest and prosecute violent criminals who attempt to wreak havoc on our city’s streets. I want to thank Commissioner Bratton, District Attorney Ken Thompson and the brave NYPD members who worked tirelessly together to secure these charges and keep our streets safe. NYPD will continue to quickly apprehend anyone responsible for gun violence in our city—and take every step to make sure they remain off our streets.”
The district attorney said that 15 of the defendants were arraigned before Brooklyn Supreme Court Justice Martin P. Murphy and Justice Miriam Cyrulnik last week and this week and ordered held without bail. Another defendant is awaiting extradition from New Jersey, and two others are being sought. The defendants who were arraigned were ordered to return to court on March 22. They face various penalties, ranging from 25 years to life for second-degree murder and up to 25 years for second-degree attempted murder. All of the defendants are charged with second-degree conspiracy, for which they face up to 25 years.
The district attorney said that, according to the investigation, the defendants, whose ages range from 18 to 27 years old, are members of No Love City, a subset of Folk Nation, and operate primarily within the confines of the 63rd, 67th, 69th and 70th precincts, mostly in the vicinity of Flatbush Avenue, Newkirk Avenue and Ditmas Avenue in Brooklyn. During the course of the conspiracy, the defendants variously allegedly agreed to commit crimes, including murder and assault, to maintain their dominance over that geographic area, particularly Flatbush.