As part of one of the greatest gang takedowns in the history of the agency, Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz and NYPD Commissioner Keechant L. Sewell confirmed the indictment of 151 counts against 33 accused gang members, including five murder charges.
The murder accusations are for the 2019 killing of 14-year-old Aamir Griffin by a purported gang member who mistaken him for a rival, and the 2020 murder of Sean Vance.
An almost three-year investigation into gun and gang violence in Baisley Park Homes and neighboring areas has resulted in the indictment.
After being indicted on 151 counts, including first, second, and fourth degree conspiracy, second degree murder, and other offenses, the defendants appeared before Queens Supreme Court Judge Kenneth C. Holder for their arraignment. The defendants, whose ages span from seventeen to forty, have been given a new court date in the second week of May by Judge Holder.
At the heart of today’s revelations is the blood rivalry between the Southeast Queens street gangs Money World and rivals Local Trap Stars and Never Forget Loyalty. While a slashing in April 2019 sparked the gang war, the killing of 14-year-old Aamir Griffin in October 2019 marked a turning point in the violence between the opposing groups.
More than twenty-two gunshots, including one fatality, have occurred since Griffin’s death. The animosity has been stoked by rap recordings and social media posts in which both parties insult the murdered relatives of their enemies and boast about their own violent deeds. Search warrants and subsequent arrests led to the recovery of 34 guns.
