“YGz” Gang Member Pleads Guilty To Attempted Murder And Other Crimes In Connection With Racketeering Conspiracy

   Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that TERRANCE WILLIAMS, a/k/a “TA,” pled guilty yesterday before U.S. District Judge Valerie E. Caproni to his involvement in a racketeering conspiracy for which he participated in an attempted murder, a robbery, and crack cocaine trafficking in connection with his membership in the “Young Gunnaz” (“YGz”) violent street gang, which operated in and around several housing developments in the South Bronx. 

According to the Indictment and other documents filed in the case, as well as statements made during the plea proceedings:

WILLIAMS was a member of the Bronx-based street gang known as the YGz, a leading member of a set of the YGz based in Maria Lopez Plaza in the Bronx, and committed acts of violence with other YGz gang members to further the interests of the gang.  From 2005 to 2016, members and associates of the YGz enriched themselves by committing robberies and by selling drugs, such as crack cocaine, heroin, and marijuana, and committed acts of violence, including murder and attempted murder, against various people, including rival gang members, rival drug traffickers, and innocent bystanders.  As part of this enterprise, members and associates of the YGz killed and attempted to kill other individuals. 

As part of his involvement in the YGz gang, WILLIAMS participated in acts of violence and crack cocaine trafficking with other YGz members.  First, on November 22, 2010, WILLIAMS and other YGz members participated in a shootout with members of a rival gang, the Courtlandt Avenue Crew, near East 163rd Street and Park Avenue in the Bronx.  During the shootout, WILLIAMS fired gunshots at and tried to kill the rival gang members, a rival Courtlandt Avenue Crew member was shot and nearly killed, and two others were shot and injured.  Second, on January 24, 2011, WILLIAMS and other YGz members robbed and assaulted a rival Courtlandt Avenue Crew associate inside a bodega on Courtlandt Avenue in the Bronx.  Third, WILLIAMS sold crack cocaine with other YGz members near Maria Lopez Plaza in the Bronx during his participation in the gang.

WILLIAMS, 24, of the Bronx, New York, pled guilty to one count of racketeering conspiracy, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.  The maximum potential sentence in this case is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the judge.  WILLIAMS will be sentenced before U.S. District Judge Valerie E. Caproni on November 29, 2016.

Mr. Bharara praised the work of ATF, the DEA, and the NYPD in the investigation of this case.   He also thanked the Bronx County District Attorney’s Office for their support in this case.