Farad Roland, Racketeering, New Jersey 2023

NEWARK, N.J. – Farad Roland, the leader of the South Side Cartel, a violent street gang in Newark, was sentenced to 540 months in prison for his admitted role in five murders, an armed carjacking, an armed robbery of a drug dealer, two counts of assault with a deadly weapon, and drug conspiracy as part of a racketeering conspiracy involving the South Side Cartel.

Farad Roland, 33, previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Esther Salas to violations of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) as part of a 27-count second superseding indictment. Judge Salas imposed the sentence today in Newark federal court.

This sentence effectively ends Farad Roland’s reign as the leader of the South Side Cartel, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito said. “Working with our partners in the FBI, the Newark Department of Public Safety, and the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office, we have removed a dangerous and violent predator from the streets of Newark, making the city safer for everyone. Stopping violent crime is a top priority of this office, and this sentence should be a warning to those who traffic in illegal drugs and commit acts of violence in support of their criminal enterprises that the office will take action to ensure that they will no longer walk free to terrorize their community.”

The South Side Cartel was a sub-set of the Bloods street gang that operated primarily on Hawthorne Avenue in Newark. Originally a neighborhood-based gang whose main activities were selling drugs and committing violent acts to aid the drug-trafficking business, many of the gang’s members were officially brought into the Bloods gang in 2002 and 2003. The gang often operated out of apartments located at 496-500 Hawthorne Avenue, which were dubbed “the Twin Towers.” Local law enforcement made repeated narcotics and gun arrests at this location. Many of the South Side Cartel members had tattoos showing the Twin Towers and the logo “SSC,” which represented the gang’s initials.

Between 2003 and 2010, the South Side Cartel was generally known among law enforcement and the FBI as the most violent street gang in Newark, committing numerous murders, shootings, robberies and other violent acts in furtherance of the enterprise. At its peak, the South Side Cartel had about 20 members or associates, many of whom have since been killed in gang-related murders or who are serving prison sentences for gang-related crimes. Roland’s two co-defendants, Malik Lowery and Mark Williams, previously pleaded guilty in federal court. Lowery was sentenced in August 2016 to more than 26 years in federal prison. Williams is scheduled to be sentenced Sept. 13, 2018.

Roland’s admission of guilt includes acknowledgement of his participation in a host of racketeering acts to further the South Side Cartel’s goals, including: The Feb. 20, 2005, murder of a Newark resident who was shot during a robbery attempt that Roland ordered one of his gang associates to carry out; The Feb. 23, 2005, murder of the 19-year-old gang associate who committed the Feb. 20, 2005 robbery-murder, to prevent him from cooperating with law enforcement and implicating Roland; The Oct. 20, 2007, murder of a fellow South Side Cartel member who had fallen into disfavor with the gang; and the Oct. 20, 2007, murder of the gang associate who was shot during a robbery attempt.

Farad Roland, a 33-year-old Newark resident, was sentenced to 540 months in prison for his role in the racketeering conspiracy, which included five murders, an armed carjacking, an armed robbery of a drug dealer, two counts of assault with a deadly weapon, and drug conspiracy. The sentence was imposed by U.S. District Judge Esther Salas in Newark federal court. The charges against Farad Roland were violations of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) as part of a 27-count second superseding indictment.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-nj/pr/leader-newark-bloods-street-gang-south-side-cartel-sentenced-45-years-prison-five-murders