Victim was Found With Multiple Gunshot Wounds in the Back of a U-Haul Van in Bayside
An indictment was unsealed in federal court in Brooklyn charging Jerome Waters, also known as “the Engineer,” Calvin Israel and William Barnett for their alleged roles in the kidnapping, robbery and fatal shooting of a victim in Queens, New York on July 25, 2024. Two of the defendants, Waters and Israel, were arrested in Maryland, and will be arraigned in the Eastern District of New York at a later date. Barnett remains at large.
Breon Peace, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, James E. Dennehy, Assistant Director in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office (FBI), and Thomas G. Donlon, Interim Commissioner, New York City Police Department (NYPD), announced the arrests and charges.
“As alleged, the defendants’ premediated robbery and kidnapping that resulted in a violent death, demonstrates the significant threat of guns and drugs in our communities,” stated United States Attorney Peace. “This Office continues to work nonstop with our law enforcement partners to hold these drivers of violent crime accountable and remove their means to wreak havoc.”
“These arrests are another example of police and their federal partners’ unrelenting pursuit of crews that monetize drugs and brutality," stated NYPD Interim Commissioner Donlon. “I commend our NYPD investigators and all of our law enforcement colleagues for their unwavering commitment to end such barbaric, senseless violence in our communities and for their tireless work to hold all those responsible for it accountable.”
As alleged in court filings, the defendants are members of a Baltimore-based violent robbery crew that conspired to commit an armed robbery and kidnapping of marijuana dealers in Queens, New York. On the night of July 24, 2024 and into July 25, 2024, the defendants drove up from Maryland to New York City for the purpose of kidnapping and robbing at gunpoint John Doe #1 and John Doe #2, who were both drug dealers. Once in New York, Waters and Barnett met with John Doe #1 and John Doe #2 at a stash house in Queens under the guise of purchasing marijuana.
Moments later, Waters and Barnett pulled out guns and held up John Doe #1 and John Doe #2. Next, they invited their co-conspirators into the stash house to assist in the robbery and kidnapping. While in the stash house, the defendants and their co-conspirators tied up John Doe #1 and John Doe #2 with zip ties and forced them outside and into the back of a Jeep and a U-Haul van at gunpoint. At the same time, the defendants and their co-conspirators stole approximately 30 pounds of marijuana from the stash house.
The defendants and their co-conspirators drove John Doe #1 and John Doe #2, who were still tied up, through Queens at gunpoint, demanding drugs and money. Israel drove the U-Haul van containing John Doe #1, who was shot to death multiple times in the head in the back of the U-Haul van. When his body was found by first responders, John Doe #1 still had a zip tie binding one of his hands and was surrounded by bags of marijuana. After the shooting, the defendants fled back to Maryland.
If convicted, Waters, Israel, and Barnett each face mandatory sentences of life imprisonment. The charges in the indictment are allegations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. As part of the program, U.S. Attorneys’ Offices work in partnership with federal, state, local and tribal law enforcement and their local communities to develop effective, locally based strategies to reduce violent crime.
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