Miles ‘Molly Rock’ Price Gets 12 Years for Bloods Gang Crimes

NEW HAVEN, Conn. — Miles Price, also known as “Molly Rock,” stood stone-faced in federal court today as he was handed a 144-month prison sentence for his role in a violent drug and gun racket tied to the Red Side Guerilla Brims (RSGB), a Bloods-affiliated street gang. The 29-year-old New Haven man was sentenced by Chief U.S. District Judge Janet C. Hall to 12 years behind bars, followed by five years of supervised release, for racketeering, firearm possession, and crack cocaine distribution.

The case traces back to January 2014, when ATF and the New Haven Police Department launched ‘Operation Red Side’—a sweeping investigation targeting the RSGB’s brutal grip on narcotics and firearms trade. Court records show the gang, led by Jeffrey Benton, orchestrated a pipeline of crack cocaine from New Haven to Bangor, Maine, while flooding the streets with guns obtained through narcotics trades. Price, an associate of the gang, helped maintain that deadly infrastructure.

But Price’s involvement went deeper than trafficking. On April 20, 2011, he joined Benton, Luis “Chewie” Padilla, and Rodrigo “Rico” Ramirez in a home invasion to rob Kevin Lee of money and marijuana. As they approached Lee’s residence, Benton handed Price a .45 caliber handgun. When Lee answered the door and lunged with a knife, Padilla opened fire—shooting Lee in the stomach, back, and finally execution-style in the head. Price stood feet away during the killing.

Price also made trips to Maine at Benton’s direction, helping expand the gang’s crack distribution network in northern communities. His criminal activity didn’t stop there. In 2014, investigators conducted seven controlled buys of crack directly from Price. Days before his arrest, on April 12, he sold a .44 caliber revolver and a .22 caliber pistol to an informant working with law enforcement.

Arrested on June 18, 2014, Price has remained in custody ever since. On October 6, 2015, he pleaded guilty to one count of engaging in a pattern of racketeering activity, one count of possession with intent to distribute crack cocaine, and one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm. His sentencing marks one of 21 convictions tied to the RSGB takedown—resolving seven murders, four attempted murders, and four armed robberies from 2011 and 2012.

Benton, Padilla, and Ramirez all admitted to Lee’s murder and other violent acts. Benton was sentenced to 480 months in prison on October 4, 2017. Padilla and Ramirez await sentencing. U.S. Attorney John H. Durham emphasized that federal inmates must serve at least 85 percent of their sentence and are ineligible for parole. The investigation was led by ATF, New Haven PD, Connecticut State Police, DEA, Maine Drug Enforcement Agency, and Hamden PD, with critical support from the New Haven State’s Attorney’s Office.