Twelve Defendants Charged in Conspiracy; Posed with Riches on Social Media
Bronx District Attorney Darcel D. Clark today announced that 12 members of the
“Sev-O” gang have been indicted in a conspiracy that includes four shootings, three
robberies and a check scam that netted them more than $200,000 from ATM machines.
District Attorney Clark said, “These young men engaged in street violence, as well
as electronic thievery, and brazenly posed with wads of cash and bragged about their
exploits on social media. Officers of the 44th Precinct were instrumental in making this
case.”
District Attorney Clark said that the defendants, who range in age from 17 to 23
years old, allegedly belong to an offshoot of the Bloods and call themselves Sev O
because most of them reside near East 170th Street and Clay Avenue in the Claremont
section of the Bronx.
They were variously charged in a 71-count indictment including first, second, third,
fourth and fifth-degree Conspiracy, second-degree Attempted Murder, second and fourth degree
Criminal Possession of a Weapon, second and third-degree Assault, first, second
and third-degree Robbery, fourth-degree Grand Larceny, Criminal Possession of a Forged
Instrument and other charges.
Five of those indicted were already in jail and seven were arrested yesterday. Four
of the defendants have been arraigned before Bronx Supreme Court Justice Steven Barrett
and are due back in court on January 19, 2017 and the rest are awaiting arraignment.
Five of the defendants are charged with first-degree Conspiracy and could face a
minimum of 15 years and a maximum of life in prison if convicted. The others could face
up to 8 1/3 to 25 years in prison if convicted of second-degree Conspiracy. A thirteenth person was charged only with Criminal Possession of a Forged Instrument.
According to the investigation, members of the group allegedly engaged in four
shootings at rival crews. On November 22, 2015, in the vicinity of 1398 Clay Avenue, it
is alleged that defendant Joel Baba (“Jay Gunz”) and Deiondre Harris (“Stackz) were
acting together, and Harris shot towards members of a rival gang, grazing a man in the
head. On November 28, 2015, during a conversation with a person on Facebook, Harris
posted a screenshot of a news article referring to a recent shooting in which a man was
grazed in the head, then stated to the person, “We going to jail…I hit something in the
head.”
In one of the robberies charged as an overt act in the indictment, on July 13, 2014,
in the vicinity of Fordham Road and Webster Avenue, defendants Emmanuel Bruntson
(“Kase”), 23, and Latif Evans (“La La”), 20, and others allegedly surrounded a young boy
on a bus, robbed him of his cell phone and ID, displayed a blade and told the victim that
if he snitched they knew where he lived and would kill him.
According to the indictment, the group obtained bank cards, PIN numbers and
forged checks. In numerous transactions, they deposited the checks into ATMs and
withdrew the cash, for a total in excess of $200,000.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Paul Irace of the
Gangs/Major Case Bureau, under the supervision of Christine Scaccia, Chief of the
Gangs/Major Case Bureau. District Attorney Clark would also like to thank Police
Officers Jawuan Hubbard and Sean Brown, formerly of the 44th Precinct; the Field
Intelligence Officers of the 44th Precinct, and the Bronx Grand Larceny Squad for their
assistance in this case.
An indictment is an accusatory instrument and not proof of a defendant’s guilt.
DEFENDANTS:
LAQUAN HEYWARD, A/K/A QUAN (10/7/94), 364 East 170th Street, Bronx, NY, REMANDED
ANDRE CURRY-CRUZ, A/K/A FLEX (12/17/94), 3190 Rochambeau Avenue, Bronx, NY
RASHAUN POPE, A/K/A RAY (4/18/97), 1241 College Avenue Bronx, NY $10,000 BAIL SET
DEVON VINES, A/K/A DEV (5/27/93), 1355 Clay Avenue, Bronx, NY REMANDED
RONNIE SULLIVAN, A/K/A ZAY (1/12/99), 1487 Teller Avenue, Bronx, NY
JOEL BABA, A/K/A JAY GUNZ (11/5/97), 1405 College Avenue, Bronx, NY
LATIF EVANS, A/K/A LA LA (12/11/95), 3190 Rochambeau Avenue, Bronx, NY
TYQUAN SMITH, A/K/A MOOKIE (12/26/95), 150 West 139th Street NY, NY
DEIONDRE HARRIS, A/K/A STACKZ (3/14/95), 306 East 171st Street, Bronx, NY
EMMANUEL BRUNTSON, A/K/A KASE (9/6/93), 15 East Clarke Place, Bronx, NY
DAVON DELKS, A/K/A DAY DAY (1/1/99), 306 East 171st Street, Bronx, NY
BRYAN VINES, A/K/A TREY (2/24/92), 739 Arnow Avenue Bronx, NY $100,000 BAIL SET
Charged only with Criminal Possession of a Forged Instrument:
RAMEL LOGAN (8/12/96), 1810 Lexington Avenue NY, NY RELEASED