Jason Soto, Firearms Offenses and Drug Trafficking, New York 2018
Jason Soto, a 29-year-old Brooklyn resident and member of the Cypress Gangster Crips street gang, was sentenced to 10 years' imprisonment for selling a firearm to a convicted felon and drug trafficking in Brooklyn, New York in 2018.
On February 2015, Soto killed Shakim Rivera, and in April 2016, he intended to poison an elderly woman due to a $100 debt he owed. Soto's crimes were committed while under investigation by the FBI and the NYPD.
The government's case against Soto was handled by the Office's Organized Crime and Gangs Section, with Assistant United States Attorneys Margaret E. Gandy, Andrey Spektor, and David N. Gopstein in charge of the prosecution.
Soto sold a .44 caliber Taurus Special revolver to a confidential informant in May 2016, whom he knew to be a convicted felon. Two months earlier, Soto sold the same informant 28 bags of crack cocaine.
A court-authorized wiretap of Soto's phone revealed evidence of other crimes, including Soto discussing the planning and commission of robberies, assaults, and murders.
With today's sentence, Soto has been held to account for the myriad crimes he committed at the Cypress Hills Houses, including the murder of a gang rival, stated United States Attorney Richard P. Donoghue.
Key Facts
- State: New York
- Category: Drug Trafficking|Violent Crime|Weapons
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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