14 Alleged Members of Flatbush-Based “Babiiez” Gang Charged in Conspiracy Indictment that Includes 11 Shootings
Over a dozen alleged members of a Flatbush-based street gang have been charged in an 81-count indictment that includes charges related to 11 shootings, the Brooklyn District Attorney (DA) announced today.
The 14 alleged members of the “Babiiez” street gang are facing charges that include conspiracy to commit murder, weapons possession and robbery.
The indictment was the result of a long-term investigation by the District Attorney and the NYPD into violence allegedly committed by the Insane Crip Gangsta (ICG) street gang, which is based within Brooklyn’s 70th Precinct.
Babiiez, an ICG subset, is named for younger members who ranged in age from 15 to 21 years old during the course of the investigation. The group’s territory is centered around the connected apartment buildings at 131-141 East 21st Street between Church and Caton Avenues, the DA said, which the defendants allegedly referred to as “The Castle,” and where they are believed to have congregated before and after several shootings described in the indictment.
Those shootings include one on June 30th of last year, when defendants Tristian Williams (19) and T. Spence (17) allegedly left “The Castle” and walked to 50 East 18th Street within the territory of the rival 8 Trey gang. At approximately 7:05 pm, Williams is seen on surveillance video firing shots at men standing in front of the building, striking an alleged 8 Trey associate in the leg, prosecutors said. Williams and Spence are then allegedly captured on surveillance video fleeing the scene.
Later that night, the DA’s office said, approximately ten men, including Williams and Spence, were standing in front of “The Castle” when shots were fired at the group. The men ran into the building to escape, and Spence is allegedly seen on surveillance video giving a firearm to Jahmaree Dublin (19). Spence, Williams, Dublin and five others then walk to the intersection of Bedford Avenue and Eastern Parkway, where surveillance video shows a man exiting a vehicle, prosecutors said. Dublin allegedly approaches the man, who is not believed to be a rival, from behind and shoots him in the leg.
In a third incident that took place around 8:00 pm on July 26, 2020, defendants Amath Kebe (18), Malik Harry (21) and Kymani Salkey (18) were allegedly riding a vehicle in the territory of rival Structure Gang when they spotted a member of that gang in front of 156 Madison Street. Surveillance video shows people firing shots from the car’s passenger side windows, hitting the rival gang member in the leg. Additional video allegedly shows Kebe, Salkey and Harry later exiting the vehicle on Bergen Street.
In addition to the acts captured on surveillance videos, Gonzalez’s office said, the defendants discussed the criminal activity mentioned in the indictment on social media, directing acts of violence and taking credit for shootings there. The office also said the defendants discussed violent acts, the possibility of being indicted, how to hold a gun, and street dominance on recorded calls made from the Rikers Island jail.
Nine handguns were recovered during the course of the investigation.
Others named in the indictment include Moustapha Diop (19); Malik Bacchus (19); Jarell Swan (18); Darius Omotunde (19); Abu Gaye (19); Bobby Thomas (20); Malik Harry (21); and K. Blount (16). All are from neighborhoods in central and eastern Brooklyn.
“It is disturbing that young people in our communities are engaged in the type of brazen and senseless gun violence described in this indictment,” Gonzalez said in a statement.
“Taking shooters off the streets has been a focus of my office and the NYPD, and long-term investigations such as this are making a real impact in restoring safety and driving down violence across Brooklyn. We will continue to target the drivers of crime and incapacitate street crews that disregard the life and safety of others."
The defendants were arraigned this afternoon before Brooklyn Supreme Court Justice Miriam Cyrulnik. The full list of charges includes conspiracy, attempted murder, robbery, criminal possession of a weapon, assault, grand larceny, reckless endangerment, criminal facilitation and false personation.
