Marc Fortier

Gang Members Charged With Selling Drugs Near School

Police charged 12 men Thursday - 11 believed to be associated with area gangs - for selling crack cocaine near a school in Boston's Roxbury neighborhood.

"Your gang is next," Boston Police Commissioner William Evans said at a press conference.

The U.S. Attorney's Office said the suspects are charged with selling crack cocaine in and around the Orchard Gardens Housing Development. Eleven of them are believed to be members of the Orchard Park Trailblazers and Vine/Forest Street gangs.

The charges are the result of a nearly 2-year investigation into the high concentration of crime in and around the housing development, which is adjacent to Orchard Gardens K-8 Pilot School.

Between October of 2015 and May of 2017, prosecutors said that three cooperating witnesses made 34 controlled drug purchases from the defendants in or around the development.

Eight of those charged were arrested Thursday, including:

  • Dominique Dozier, 31, of Boston
  • Tyree Draugh, 25, of Boston
  • Daiquan Lucas, 24, of Boston
  • Jeremiah Mines, 24, of Boston
  • Andre Parham-Rankin, 21, of Boston
  • Lyndon Scott, 27, of Brockton
  • Keon Smith, 38, of Boston
  • Kevin Woods, 26, of Boston

Two others - Raymond Gaines, 38, of Brockton, and Jaylin Hawkins, 23, of Boston, are fugitives and are being sought by police.

In addition, Raul Williams, 26, of Boston was previously charged by the state, and Jose Quinones, 26, was charged with being an undocumented immigrant in possession of a firearm and distribution of cocaine base and was deported to the Dominican Republic.

According to Boston police records, 10 of the defendants have been shot or stabbed, some more than once.

During an earlier phase of the investigation, prosecutors said Diamond Brito, a member of the Orchard Park Trailblazers gang, was charged with gun and drug offenses and sentenced to eight years in prison. Brito sold investigators 12 guns and over 35 grams of crack cocaine.

According to court documents, residents of the Orchard Gardens Housing Development have frequently expressed concerns to police about the violence in the area and the gang members who "contribute to an atmosphere of fear and intimidation."

Thursday's arrests come just one day after Boston police and the Suffolk District Attorney's Office announced that 17 people had been indicted on nearly 100 charges in a gang crackdown focused on the Wendover Street and Cameron Street gangs. Twenty-two unlicensed guns were seized as a result of that investigation.

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