Devon Dent, Racketeering, Maryland 2019

Devon Dent Pleads Guilty to Racketeering in Maryland

Baltimore, Maryland – Devon Dent, age 28, of Baltimore, Maryland pleaded guilty on February 27, 2019, to racketeering and drug conspiracies related to his participation in the gang activities of the Murdaland Mafia Piru (MMP), a subset of the Bloods gang.

As part of his gang activities, Dent admitted that he distributed crack cocaine for the gang and that he was present when a MMP co-defendant attempted to kill a victim outside a Baltimore nightclub, shooting that person multiple times in the head and torso. According to Dent’s plea agreement and court documents, MMP, also known as the “Mob” or “Mobsters,” is a violent subset of the Bloods gang that operates in Maryland and elsewhere.

The gang’s drug shop in the 5200 block of Windsor Mill Road was particularly lucrative due to its close proximity to Interstate 70, and it frequently attracted drug customers driving from Western Maryland and neighboring states. MMP’s members enriched themselves through drug trafficking and other criminal activities, and using violence and threats of violence to intimidate or retaliate against witnesses, protect the gang’s territories, enforce debts, and eliminate rivals.

Dent admits that he was a member of MMP and participated in the gang’s affairs through a pattern of racketeering activities, including murder, extortion, robbery, witness tampering and retaliation, money laundering, and drug distribution. Specifically, Dent admits that on October 15, 2012, he was present when a co-defendant attempted to murder a victim, shooting him multiple times in the head and torso with a .45 caliber firearm outside Club Mirage in downtown Baltimore.

On November 4, 2012, Dent possessed with intent to distribute roughly 12 grams of heroin and 21 grams of crack cocaine, as well as MMP paperwork. The paperwork detailed the history and structure of the gang, as well as certain rules of conduct, including that “retaliation is a must,” and that “co-operation with authorities that lead[s] to incriminating others” is punishable by death.

Including Dent, twenty of twenty-six defendants have pleaded guilty in the case. Trial is tentatively scheduled to begin on March 18, 2019 for the remaining defendants. Dent and the government have agreed that if the Court accepts the plea agreement, Dent will be sentenced to between 10 and 15 years in prison.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/pr/member-violent-murdaland-mafia-piru-bloods-gang-pleads-guilty-racketeering-and-drug-0