Geoffrey S. Berman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and James P. O’Neill, Commissioner of the New York City Police Department (“NYPD”) announced the unsealing today of an Indictment charging RAKIM BROWN, a/k/a “Ra,” with the January 28, 2018, shooting of a woman in connection with a drug conspiracy, resulting in injuries to her face and leg. BROWN will be presented and arraigned today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Kevin Nathaniel Fox. The case is assigned to U.S. District Judge Sidney H. Stein.
U.S. Attorney Geoffrey S. Berman said: “Working with the NYPD and our other law enforcement partners, we will continue to investigate and prosecute drug trafficking and the violence that so often accompanies it. The indictment of Rakim Brown for a drug-related shooting demonstrates that link between drugs and guns.”
NYPD Commissioner James P. O’Neill said: “The NYPD and its law enforcement partners pursue – unrelentingly and with precision – those who carry guns and those who traffic illegal drugs. I want to thank the investigators and prosecutors who worked to obtain today’s indictment. Their work helps make our city safer.”
As alleged in the Indictment unsealed today in Manhattan federal court[1]:
Between 2016 up to and including 2018, RAKIM BROWN, a/k/a “Ra,” was involved in a conspiracy to distribute crack cocaine. Between April 2017 up to and including 2018, BROWN used, carried, and discharged a firearm during and in furtherance of that drug conspiracy, including on January 28, 2018, when, in connection with a dispute with a rival drug crew, he shot at a woman and caused injuries to her face and leg.
BROWN, 24, of the Bronx, New York, is charged with one count of conspiracy to distribute crack cocaine, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, and one count of using and carrying a firearm, which was brandished and discharged, in connection with the narcotics conspiracy, which carries a maximum sentence of life in prison and a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison. The statutory maximum penalties are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendant would be determined by the judge.
Mr. Berman praised the outstanding investigative work of the NYPD.
The charges contained in the Indictment are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
