NYPD: 15 Arrested, Guns And Drugs Seized In HNY Queens-Based Gang
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) - Police have arrested 15 people and seized more than 10 illegal guns keep hidden in multiple locations, plus 1.5 kilogram of cocaine traced back to a gang-related shooting in May.
NYPD investigators say members of the Hollis-based Henderson New York street gang stashed communal firearms in various locations, including trap compartments in vehicles as well as a barbecue grill at a residence, that were allegedly shared among gang members to use in shootings.
Several of the defendants were charged with attempted murder for the unsuccessful hit on a rival gang member near the Baisley Park Houses last year. Thirteen defendants are in custody and two are being sought.
Police say the street gang, which also refers to itself as HNY, takes its name from Henderson Avenue, a Hollis, Queens, thoroughfare.
"The defendants are accused of peddling death by trafficking in the sale of illegal drugs and firearms," said Queens Acting District Attorney John Ryan. "Today's arrests, targeting the gang's alleged leaders, will put a significant dent in the drug trafficking and drug-related violence plaguing the area."
The DA's office identified the main HNY defendants as Dwayne Bratton, Jerrel Henderson and Hanif Campbell who are charged, along with three others, in a seven-count indictment with plotting to kill a rival gang member in the vicinity of the Baisley Park Houses on May 6, 2018.
According to the charges, Henderson, 18, shot at the rival gang member but missed.
In another indictment, Wallace Stevenson, 57, and Darron Swinnie, 27, are accused of being father-and-son drug dealers who distributed cocaine throughout the Queens area.
According to the witness intimidation indictment, said Acting DA Ryan, a 23-year-old man was physically attacked during an argument in a McDonald's parking lot on Springfield Boulevard in September 2018 by defendants Isaac Wheeler and Khoran Simmons, both of whom were 16 at the time.
Police said the victim suffered bruising to his ribs and eye, as well as a laceration to the cheek that required stitches.
Eight months later, on May 31, 2019, Wheeler, along with two others, are alleged to have stabbed the victim's brother in an effort to intimidate the September victim into dropping the criminal charges. The stabbing victim suffered a puncture wound to his back that required surgery.
