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“These defendants are charged with orchestrating and participating in a massive drug trafficking organization that pumped heroin and crack cocaine into the streets of Newark and surrounding areas virtually non-stop,” \Carpenito said. “As alleged in the complaint, they operated out of an abandoned home in Newark that they turned into a fortress protected by illegal firearms, which featured a fast-food-style drive-through window for the quick and easy sale of these dangerous drugs. We are proud to work with our federal, state, and local partners in targeting criminal organizations like these and bringing the participants to justice.”
A total of 20 people have been arrested in the sweep and another two were still at large Tuesday, Carpenito also said. An additional five were already in custody when they were brought up on the federal charges, Carpenito said.
A number of those charged belong to a subset of the Bloods gang that called itself the “CKarter Boys,” a name inspired by the 1991 film New Jack City, authorities said.
The gang ran a nonstop drug market that netted about $10,000 a day, authorities said. They operated out of two abandoned houses in Newark near the Irvington line and not far from a grade school and a residential neighborhood, according to authorities.
One of the houses, at 921 South 20th St., was boarded up and could only be accessed with a ladder leading to the second floor, where buyers could slip cash through a hole in the wall and receive drugs in return. A backyard shed was used as an armory where investigators found several boxes of ammo and weapons including 9mm Sig Sauer firearms, authorities also said.
Several agencies were involved in the sweep, including the ATF and the FBI as well as local law enforcement. Carpenito said the Union County Prosecutor’s Office, the State Police, the Essex County Sheriff’s Office and the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office as well as the police departments in Belleville, Irvington, West Orange, Livingston, Nutley, Orange and Verona also assisted in the investigation.
Those charged face anywhere from several years to life in prison on drugs and other charges. They are:
Shaheed Blake, 36
Anderson Hutchinson, 37
Keyenn Rodgers, 49
Jason Colon, 37
Jesse Scott, 41
Hanif Yarrell, 37
William Teal, 42
Daquan Lockhart, 29
Jabaar Blake, 39
Sharif Davis, 36
Dorrell Blake, 43
David Rogers, 26
Roger Thomas, 49
Anthony Bowens, 55
Shadeasha Ford, 40
Aldoray McClain, 49
Rasheem Langley, 46
Brittney Thomas, 30
Andrew Knox, 50
Todd Garrett, 51
Majuan Green, 38
Lamont Pugh, 50
Marquise O’Neal, 51
Rayshell Goff, 49
Bernard Brown, 52
Paul Johnson, 40
Aaron Watson, 42
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