Dozens of alleged gang members were being charged Wednesday in a major takedown of an operation that federal authorities say was responsible for nine murders and 24 attempted murders.
Federal authorities were expected to announce charges against 40 suspected members of the Bronx Trinitarios Gang, with nicknames like “Webb Killa,” “Machete,” “Blood” and “Fugitivo."
Over the past three years, authorities have charged 119 people in the so-called Bronx Trinitarios Gang (BTG).
NBC 4 New York cameras were there as some of the suspects were led away by NYPD, ATF, ICE and DEA agents. The Trinitarios gang is made up of mostly Dominican members and associates involved in narcotics trafficking, authorities said..
Investigators said the gang dealt cocaine, prescription drugs and marijuana and used violence to protect its Bronx turf.
DEA agents said BTG targeted members of rival gangs like the Bloods, Crips, Latin Kings and Dominicans Don’t Play (DDP). The crimes charged in this case date back to 2003.
Two murders took place in the Bronx on May 23, 2010. Another murder charged in the case is the March 31, 2009 killing of Raymond Casul along West Kingsbridge Road in the Bronx. Another conspiracy to murder count includes the Sept. 3, 2005 plot to kill Ka’ Shawn Phillips of Yonkers, prosecutors said.
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Investigators said the gang used revolvers, shotguns, machine guns and other firearms to protect their turf.
