| TRENTON - Attorney General Jeffrey S. Chiesa announced that a member of the Gangster Killer Bloods street gang was sentenced to state prison today for conspiring in the slaying of a Trenton man who was gunned down during violence between rival gangs in 2005.
Juan “Cherokee” Robinson, 25, of Trenton, was sentenced to 12 years in state prison, including more than 10 years of parole ineligibility, by Superior Court Judge Robert C. Billmeier in Mercer County. Robinson pleaded guilty on March 4 to first-degree conspiracy to commit murder for conspiring with other members of the Gangster Killer Bloods in the murder of Kareem Washington, who was shot in a retaliation shooting because he was a member of the rival Nine Trey Gangsters.
On May 3, Anthony “Ace” Coleman, 28, of Trenton, was sentenced to 20 years in prison, including 17 years of parole ineligibility, in connection with the murder of Washington. Coleman fatally shot Washington, 28, in the neck on Ellsworth Avenue on Aug. 28, 2005. Coleman shot him in retaliation for prior shootings of Gangster Killer Bloods by Nine Trey Gangsters, including shootings that took place the day before on Passaic Street that wounded three Gangster Killer Bloods members. Robinson and another gang member, Curtis “Rabbit” Hawkins, 26, of Trenton, were in a car with Coleman searching for a member of the Nine Trey Gangsters to kill when they saw Washington. Coleman got out and killed him. Hawkins was sentenced on May 3 to 15 years in prison, including nearly 13 years of parole ineligibility, on a charge of conspiracy to commit murder related to Washington.
Deputy Attorney General Daniel I. Bornstein prosecuted the defendants for the Division of Criminal Justice Gangs & Organized Crime Bureau and handled the sentencings. The defendants were charged in “Operation Capital City,” an investigation by the Division of Criminal Justice, Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office, Trenton Police Department and New Jersey State Police.
The three defendants sentenced today were among 16 defendants indicted in connection with the crimes that occurred in 2005, when violence erupted between the Gangster Killer Bloods and two rival Bloods sets, the Nine Trey Gangsters and Sex Money Murder. There was also violence against the rival Crips gang. Three people were killed, including 22-year-old Sharee Voorhees, who was caught in crossfire while out on her porch. Kareem Washington was killed the same day as Voorhees.
On March 25, Bernard Green, 30, aka “Petey Black,” the head of the Gangster Killer Bloods in Trenton, pleaded guilty to aggravated manslaughter for ordering that gang members carry out the shooting that resulted in Voorhees’ death. He also pled guilty to racketeering. Under his plea agreement, Green faces 36 years in prison, including 22 years of parole ineligibility. He is scheduled for sentencing on May 31. #### |
