Bullets tore through a Cadillac Escalade on a quiet Buffalo street in 2012, killing Brad Daniels—but the real target was a rival drug dealer. That’s what Taire Chaney, 28, of Buffalo, admitted in federal court, where he pleaded guilty to conspiring to distribute cocaine and crack cocaine, and to unleashing a hail of gunfire that ended Daniels’ life.
Chaney stood before Senior U.S. District Judge William M. Skretny and acknowledged his role in a years-long drug operation centered in the Perry Housing Projects. From 2008 to March 9, 2012, he conspired with Tyshawn Bradley and others to flood the neighborhood with crack and cocaine. The operation wasn’t just about profit—it was about control, and when that control was threatened, blood followed.
In summer 2010, Chaney and Bradley saw a rival dealer moving in on their turf, selling crack in the Perry Projects. Tensions flared. Then, on July 29, 2010, one of Bradley’s associates was shot dead on Perry Street. The two blamed the rival, and retaliation became inevitable. Over the next months, they stalked their target, even opening fire, but missing.
The fatal strike came on February 29, 2012. Mistaking Brad Daniels for part of the threat, Chaney, Bradley, and another co-conspirator chased a Cadillac Escalade after it dropped off the intended target. When the SUV stopped on Bardol Street, they moved in. Chaney fired multiple rounds from a .45 caliber handgun through the driver’s side window. Bradley sprayed bullets from the rear and passenger side. The third man unloaded a 9mm into the back. Daniels, innocent of the drug war, took three rounds—one fired by Chaney—and died.
The FBI Safe Streets Task Force, under Special Agent-in-Charge Stephen Belongia, and the Buffalo Police Department, led by Commissioner Byron Lockwood, pieced together the ambush. Ballistics confirmed Chaney’s shot was fatal. Bradley was already convicted and sentenced to 30 years. Now, justice closes in on the triggerman who waited years to face judgment.
Chaney now faces up to 20 years in federal prison and a $1,000,000 fine. Sentencing is set for November 18, 2020, at 9:00 a.m. before Judge Skretny. No plea deal can erase the truth: a man is dead, not in a war of heroes, but over crack cocaine and corner dominance.
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Key Facts
- State: New York
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Drug Trafficking|Violent Crime|Organized Crime
- Source: Official Source ↗
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