SAMUEL DOUGLAS, Conspiracy to Engage in a Pattern of Racketeering Activity, Connecticut 2024

NEW HAVEN, CT – A member of the violent New Haven gang Exit 8 has been sentenced to 84 months in federal prison for his role in a string of violent crimes.

SAMUEL DOUGLAS, also known as “Blamm,” 25, of New Haven, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Victor A. Bolden in New Haven to 84 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for his participation in the violent New Haven street gang.

The investigation into the Exit 8 gang, which has been ongoing since 2018, revealed that Douglas and other members of the gang engaged in drug trafficking, used and shared firearms, and committed at least three murders and 16 attempted murders. Investigators also found that gang members stole vehicles, at times from outside of the state, and used those stolen vehicles when committing acts of violence.

The gang promoted, coordinated, facilitated, and celebrated their narcotics distribution and acts of violence through text messaging and the use of social media applications and websites, including Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, and YouTube.

On April 22, 2024, Douglas pleaded guilty to conspiracy to engage in a pattern of racketeering activity, and specifically admitted that on June 16, 2018, he and fellow Exit 8 member Kiveon Hyman shot at and attempted to kill a member and associate of a rival gang in the area of Fountain Street, Davis Street, and Lakeview Terrace in New Haven. In the shooting, the intended victim’s associate suffered seven gunshot wounds, but survived the attack.

Investigators found 15 spent ammunition casings at the scene and subsequently recovered two handguns that fired the ammunition casings. One handgun was seized in March 2019 from a now-deceased Exit 8 member, while the second handgun was recovered during a New Haven Police investigation in January 2020. National Integrated Ballistic Information Network (NIBIN) analysis of the second handgun linked it to eight other shooting incidents in New Haven in 2018.

Douglas has been detained since November 10, 2022. His co-defendant, Kiveon Hyman, pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 78 months of imprisonment on April 1, 2024.

This investigation was conducted by the ATF, the FBI, the DEA, the New Haven Police Department, the Hamden Police Department, and the New Haven State’s Attorney’s Office, with the assistance of the Connecticut State Police and the Connecticut Forensic Science Laboratory. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Rahul Kale and Jocelyn C. Kaoutzanis.

The prosecution is part of the Justice’s Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), Project Longevity and Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) programs, which aim to reduce violent crime and make neighborhoods safer for everyone.

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