Delonte Conley, 27, of Baltimore, is headed to federal prison for 150 months after pleading guilty to racketeering conspiracy as a core member of the violent Hillside gang that terrorized the Cherry Hill neighborhood with drugs and gunfire. U.S. District Judge George L. Russell, III handed down the sentence, which includes three years of supervised release, marking another major blow to the gang’s operations.
Conley admitted to preparing and distributing heroin, powder cocaine, crack, and marijuana from two known “cut houses” — 453 Roundview Road and 2300 Terra Firma Road — between December 2014 and November 2015. Surveillance footage captured him inside both locations processing narcotics for street sale. The Hillside Enterprise, as prosecutors call it, used colored vials and food dye to brand their drugs, creating a signature street identity tied directly to violence and control.
The gang’s business model was brutal: sell drugs, funnel profits into firearms, and use those guns to protect territory, silence rivals, and punish disloyalty. Conley acknowledged that during his involvement, Hillside trafficked between one and three kilograms of heroin and five to 15 kilograms of cocaine. The money didn’t go to survival — it went to weapons, power, and perpetuating a cycle of fear in west and southwest Baltimore.
Violence wasn’t an accident — it was policy. Hillside members routinely committed beatings, shootings, and murders, not only against rivals like Up Da Hill (UDH) and the Lakebrook Circle Boys but also against their own when discipline was deemed necessary. Conley admitted he knew about multiple homicides tied to the gang and personally took part in acts of violence to further the enterprise’s criminal goals.
“Delonte Conley chose to join an organized criminal enterprise that preyed on the Cherry Hill neighborhood by dealing drugs and committing violent gun crimes,” said U.S. Attorney Robert K. Hur. “Now he will spend over 12 years in federal prison, where there is no parole—ever. Put down the guns and save a life—maybe even your own.”
The takedown of Conley is part of a broader crackdown: 19 Hillside gang members and associates have now pleaded guilty. ATF, Baltimore Police, and federal prosecutors say the coordinated effort is dismantling one of the city’s most entrenched street organizations. “ATF is determined to collaborate with our law enforcement partners to ensure Baltimore neighborhoods can be free of violence,” said Special Agent in Charge Rob Cekada. For Cherry Hill, justice is long overdue — and the body count just keeps rising.
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Key Facts
- State: Maryland
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Organized Crime
- Source: Official Source ↗
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