Five members of a gang that sold drugs and committed violent crime in and around Baltimore's Waverly neighborhood, including the 2014 shooting death of 3-year-old McKenzie Elliot, pleaded guilty to participating in a racketeering scheme, the United States Attorney for the District of Maryland said.
The five men, members of the Old York Money Gang, join two others who had previously pleaded guilty, and four more gang members awaiting trial scheduled for Nov. 5:
- Emmanuel Rose, 27, pleaded guilty on Oct. 1 to participating in a racketeering conspiracy
- Jason Snowden, 22, pleaded guilty on Oct. 10 to participating in a racketeering conspiracy
- Dovonte "Chopper" Rich, 24 pleaded guilty on Oct. 2 to conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 280 and 840 grams of crack cocaine
- Keith Wilson, 24, pleaded guilty on Oct. 3 to conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 280 and 840 grams of crack cocaine
- Calvin Watson, 27, pleaded guilty on Oct. 12 to conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 280 and 840 grams of crack cocaine
- Tyron Brown, 28, pleaded guilty on Aug. 15 to participating in a drug distribution conspiracy
- Davind Lawson, 27, pleaded guilty on Jan. 23 to participating in a drug distribution conspiracy
According to plea agreements and other information gathered from court documents, Rich, Snowden, Watson, Rose, and Wilson were all members of the OYMG, operating as a violent drug trafficking crew in Waverly from January 2014 to April 2017. The group committed robberies, murders, extortion, burglaries, and drug trafficking. The gang was considered a neighborhood group and generally did not include "outsiders," the plea documents said.
An investigation by the ATF and the Baltimore Police Department began in October of 2016, as undercover officers purchased cocaine and heroin from OYMG members, including Watson and Rose.
Members of the gang often carried guns to defend their territory. Police recovered a gun and packaging for cannabis from a car stop involving Snowden on Feb. 5, 2016. Two members of the OYMG robbed a restaurant across from their "drug shop," stealing nearly $30,000 on Oct. 2, 2017. A woman's eye socket was shattered when she was struck during the robbery. Snowden was identified as one of the robbers.
Rich and other gang members attacked three victims who entered their territory in support of a female friend engaging in a fight with the sister of a gang member on July 30, 2014. Two days later, the victims returned to the gang's drug shop, where a member of the gang fired shots at their car.
One bullet struck a person in the car in the head. The other bullet struck the 3-year-old Elliot, an innocent bystander.
Lawson was sentenced to 80 months, or six years and eight months, in prison. If the court accepts Watson's plead, he will be sentenced to 90 months, or seven years and six months. Wilson, Brown, Snowden, Rose, and Rich will be sentenced in early 2019.
