Photo Courtesy of DA Katz’s Office
“Gang warfare will not become the norm in Queens County,” DA Katz said.
By Forum Staff
More than two-dozen suspects, alleged members of warring gang factions within the Queensbridge and Ravenswood public housing developments in Long Island City, have been indicted by a borough grand jury on a slew of charges, including murder, attempted murder, attempted assault, and criminal possession of a weapon. All 28 individualshave been charged with conspiracy to commit murder and possession of illegal firearms, Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced Thursday.
The defendants are charged in a 141-count indictment. Two of the defendants are accused of carrying out the brazen, broad daylight killing of schoolteacher George Rosa. The 53-year-old victim was walking his dog near the Queensbridge Houses when he was struck by a stray bullet after two alleged gang members from the Ravenswood Houses shot at and missed a Queensbridge foe on July 25, 2020. Rosa died just over a month later from the wound. Seven other people were also shot in and around these public houses and recovered from the injuries.
According to the indictment:
- The defendants are allegedly members or associates of one of three large rival groups/gangs operating in and around Long Island City and Astoria: Jet Blue and the MakkBallers in Queensbridge and Money the Motivation/Obligated to Money (MTM/OTM) in Ravenswood, each of which has its own affiliations with other groups/gangs in the area.
- Members and associates of the two Queensbridge groups, Jet Blue and MakkBallers, are accused of regularly conspiring to commit and participating in criminal, violent acts against each other in order to assert their dominance within the housing development.
- In addition to the rivalry between Jet Blue and MakkBaller members, a separate feud between Queensbridge factions and Ravenswood gang members allegedly resulted in violent, criminal activity, including at least two homicides – the July 25, 2020, shooting of George Rosa, and the as-yet-unsolved Aug. 9, 2020, killing of MagdySaleh, a MakkBaller from Queensbridge.
- It was common practice for members and associates of one group to travel to territory controlled by another, typically in a vehicle, to seek out rival gang members to target, a process referred to as “spinning” or “spinning the block.” These alleged acts of violence between rival gang members were typically precipitated by such “spinning.” It was also part of the conspiracies for members and associates to purchase, possess, transport, and keep readily available loaded firearms and ammunition.
- As part of the conspiracies, gang members and associates used code words and phrases to hide the alleged criminal nature of their communication and to avoid detection and apprehension by members of law enforcement. Among those code words and phrases were various references to firearms, such as “jackie,” “jumanji,” “shorty,” “shit,” “girl,” “grip,” “heat” and “bitch.”
- It was also part of the conspiracies for the defendants to communicate with gang members and associates on behalf of incarcerated members in order to convey messages, orders and other directives to members on the street. Communications with incarcerated gang members and associates was in coded, guarded and cryptic language, in order to avoid detection and apprehension by members of law enforcement.
