Erik Reese, Violent Crimes in Aid of Racketeering Activity, Tennessee 2014

Gangster Disciples Members Sentenced to Life in Prison, Memphis, TN

Seven members of the notorious Gangster Disciples gang have pleaded guilty to violent crimes in aid of racketeering activity. The guilty pleas were announced by Lawrence J. Laurenzi, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Tennessee.

The Gangster Disciples, a violent gang with roots in the Chicago, Illinois area, began recruiting heavily in the 1970s and spread throughout the Midwestern and Eastern United States by the mid-1980s. The gang has active members in approximately 35 states, including Tennessee.

The purpose of the Gangster Disciples’ enterprise is to preserve and protect their power through threats, intimidation, and acts of violence, including murder.

On June 21, 2014, Florence Anthony, a member of the Gangster Disciples, got into an altercation with a group of individuals at the Hillview Apartments in Memphis. Anthony reported the confrontation to her gang’s chain-of-command, and she and fellow gang member Brandon Milton returned to the apartments to retaliate. Milton fired at least three shots at a group of individuals standing outside the apartments.

Later that day, Edwin Carvin, Robert Mallory, Tony Coburn, Erik Reese, and Ranito Allen, all members of the Gangster Disciples, went back to the Hillview Apartments to retaliate against rival gang members. Carvin, Mallory, Coburn, Reese, and Allen were each armed with firearms and proceeded on foot through the apartments, shooting four juveniles and one adult male. All five victims survived, but some sustained serious bodily injuries.

The seven members of the Gangster Disciples were indicted by a federal grand jury on charges including violent crimes in aid of racketeering activity in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1959 and possession of a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 924 (c). Each faces up to life in federal prison and a fine of up to $250,000.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Multi-Agency Gang Unit, Police Departments for Memphis, Bartlett and Germantown; Sheriff’s Offices for Tipton, Desoto and Shelby; and the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation Crime Lab.

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