Brownsville Gang Bust: DA Says 35 Violent Dealers, Thieves Tormented Neighborhood

UPDATE: The NYPD released dramatic footage Tuesday night of their "Hoodstarz takedown" in the streets of Brownsville.

BROWNSVILLE, BROOKLYN — Thirty-five alleged members of the Hoodstarz gang in Brownsville and its affiliated crews, such as Folk Nation and the 823 Crips, were arrested in a sweeping NYPD gang bust this week. They're accused of tormenting both neighbors and strangers for more than a year, with stunts ranging from "violent street crime to sophisticated credit card fraud," the Brooklyn District Attorney's Office said Tuesday.

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"For those from Brownsville, this is the end of Hoodstarz's violence, identity theft, bogus rental cars, and drug dealing that permeated the streets," NYPD Commissioner James P. O’Neill said.

The suspected gangsters have been variously charged for dealing drugs; stealing people's identities and making massive online charges on their credit cards; invading and robbing homes; and running around with illegal weapons in their possession, according to the DA's office.

For example: At one point last winter, 29-year-old Tyrone “Ty” Sexton allegedly used stolen credit card info from two women to purchase around $750 in merchandise from American Girl, the doll company owned by Mattel — then had the loot shipped to his Brownsville apartment. Sexton then struck again in May, the DA said, when he tried to use credit card info from a woman in Minnesota to buy 16 tickets to Summer Jam. (However, when he tried to tell a customer service rep his name was "Carol," the transaction was cancelled, the DA said.)

In another alleged gang-related incident last May that could have turned deadly, the DA said, a gun belonging to 20-year-old Sean Burgess was found in the backpack of an 8-year-old boy at P.S. 91 in East Flatbush. "Bro, my, my brother got caught up in a jam… that was my chop," Burgess allegedly said in a wiretapped phone conversation, claiming responsibility for the gun.

The NYPD's Gun Violence Suppression Division, led by Chief of Detectives Bob Boyce, has been tracking the gang's activity since the fall of 2015, the DA said.

Investigators relied heavily on "electronic surveillance" to gather evidence for the bust, the DA said. In other words, they tapped into suspects' Facebook conversations and cellphone communications for more than a year.

"By targeting known gang members responsible for violence in our streets, we have exposed and interrupted a number of interconnected criminal enterprises, from drug dealing to credit card forgeries," Acting District Attorney Eric Gonzalez said Tuesday. "As alleged, the defendants targeted not only their neighbors — who they attacked and robbed in their homes and on the street — but also strangers who they'd never met, stealing their identities to line their own pockets."

The charges announced Tuesday are almost all tied to seven main operations, the DA said. In addition to the two listed above (the American Girl/Summer Jam fraud and the gun in the little boy's backpack), they are:

On Jan. 26, 2016, Jayquan Wimms, Shaquille Armstrong, Jhalanie Jones, Kamal Chase and Sebastian Maione allegedly committed a home invasion at an apartment on St. Marks Street in Prospect Heights, Brooklyn. Maione, who knew the victim, a purported marijuana dealer, entered the apartment and, moments later, the co-defendants pushed their way in. The apartment dweller was pistol-whipped and he and his girlfriend were held at gun point, according to the investigation. The defendants left with cash, cell phones, computers and a Play Station 4 gaming system that was later sold by Wimms at a GameStop location, the evidence showed.

On August 10, 2015, a group of people entered the Upper 90 soccer store in Boerum Hill, took $4,000 worth of merchandise and stormed out. Through communications that were intercepted months later, Khalil Chase, Sherif Randolph and Shavelle Mills were identified as the alleged perpetrators of the theft and indicted for grand larceny.

Between November 2015 and October 2016, Andre Cheeves, Hasean Wyche, Andrew Leebing and Tyrone Sexton were allegedly engaged in a conspiracy to sell cocaine on the streets of Brooklyn, primarily in and around Brownsville. The defendants used coded and cryptic communication to evade law enforcement, according to the indictment.

Between December 2015 and May 2016, Felipe Avila Sr. and Felipe Avila Jr. (father and son) allegedly used a forged Pennsylvania driver’s license, other documents and stolen financial information that was embossed onto fraudulent credit cards to create ZipCar accounts. They then used the bogus cards to rent a BMX X3, a Cadillac ATS, a Chrysler 200 and other vehicles from ZipCar and other rental companies, according to the indictment. During the execution of a search warrant at the defendants’ home, over 700 allegedly forged credit, debit and gift cards and three embossing machines were recovered.

On January 5, 2016, Shaquille Reid was allegedly provided by Sexton with a Bank of America account number and received a blank credit card from Avila Jr., according to the indictment. Using an embossing machine, Reid allegedly created a forged credit card bearing his name and used it to pay for numerous taxi rides and other expenses. At various times, in order to check that the card was still active without raising suspicion, the defendant made $1 purchases at a Muni Meter parking machine, the investigation found.

Below is a full list of the suspects, their ages, their home neighborhoods and their charges, courtesy of the DA's office. All of the defendants are innocent until proven guilty.

Narcotics Distribution

1. Andre (“Cool Breeze”) Cheeves, 27, of Crown Heights, Brooklyn
2. Hasean (“Sonny”) Wyche, 37, of Brownsville, Brooklyn
3. Andrew Leebing, 29, of Brownsville, Brooklyn
4. Tyrone (“Ty”) Sexton, 29, of East New York, Brooklyn

Financial Crimes

1. Tyrone (“Ty”) Sexton, 29, of East New York, Brooklyn
2. Shaquille (“Lotso”) Reid, 23, of Brownsville, Brooklyn
3. Tasheem (“Drugz”) Banks, 26, of Brownsville, Brooklyn
4. Jayquan (“Little Jay”) Wimms, 19, of Brownsville, Brooklyn
5. Shaquille (“Shaq”) Armstrong, 22, of Brownsville, Brooklyn
6. Christina (“Chrissy) Garcia, 19, of Rockaway Park, Queens
7. Zaria Watson, 19, of South Ozone Park, Queens
8. Abigail Foster, 21, of Brownsville, Brooklyn
9. Felipe (“Flip”) Avila Jr., 25, of Brownsville, Brooklyn
10. Felipe Avila Sr., 54, of Brownsville, Brooklyn
11. Jordan (“Spade”) Amador, 23, of East Flatbush, Brooklyn
12. Sayquan (“Gucci”) McKenzie, 25, of Camden, NJ
13. Bahiem Gary, 19, of Brownsville, Brooklyn
14. Jeremiah Mattis, 26, of Brownsville, Brooklyn

Violent Crimes

1. Khalil Chase, 19, of Brownsville, Brooklyn
2. Sharif Randolph, 19, of Brownsville, Brooklyn
3. Shavelle Mills, 19, of Brownsville, Brooklyn
4. Shaquille (“Lotso”) Reid, 23, of Brownsville, Brooklyn
5. Jayquan (“Little Jay”) Wimms, 19, of Brownsville, Brooklyn
6. Shaquille (“Shaq”) Armstrong, 22, of Brownsville, Brooklyn
7. Jhalanie Jones, 20, of Ozone Park, Queens
8. Kamal (“Bugatti”) Chase, 19, of Brownsville, Brooklyn
9. Sebastian Maione, 20, of Prospect Heights, Brooklyn
10. Tyrone (“Ty”) Sexton, 29, of East New York, Brooklyn
11. Gary (“Slary”) Sexton, 21, of Brownsville, Brooklyn
12. Dextaryon Patterson, 27, of Brownsville, Brooklyn
13. Dwayne Walcott, 27, of Brownsville, Brooklyn
14. Keith (“Dope”) Daniels, 31, of Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn
15. Sean Burgess, 20, of Stapleton, Staten Island
16. Adrian (“Smutta”) Febus, 24, of East Flatbush, Brooklyn
17. Kareem Hendricks, 18, of East New York, Brooklyn
18. Yonny Skinner, 23, of Brownsville, Brooklyn
19. Jermoine Faison, 22, of Brownsville, Brooklyn
20. Michael Duncan, 28, of Sunset Park, Brooklyn
21. Sideequah Taylor, 18, of Brownsville, Brooklyn
22. Dwayne (“Weezy”) Butts, 32, of Fredericksburg, Virginia

Photo via Shutterstock