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Totowa,
New Jersey –Targeting the most violent
street gangs, a State Police-led coalition
today arrested more members of the Bloods
street gang set named Sex Money Murder (SMM).
The arrests include the three-person state
leadership committee of this well-established
set, which has members in every county of
New Jersey. The raids also resulted in the
seizure of drugs and weapons.
The
announcement by First Assistant Attorney
General Anne Milgram, State Police Deputy
Superintendent Gayle Cameron, and Division
of Criminal Justice Director Gregory Paw
came from State Police Troop B Headquarters
in Totowa. Those gang members arrested this
morning were processed in Totowa and transported
to Monmouth County Jail by bus.
SMM
has an estimated New Jersey membership of
3,000 people. They are considered one of
the most violent sets, and have been involved
in murders, weapons and drug distribution,
money laundering, assaults and related crimes.
This collaborative investigation targeted
the gang’s presence in northern New
Jersey, predominantly in Paterson, Passaic,
Hackensack and Lincoln Park.
“This murderous set of the Bloods
has terrorized neighborhoods throughout
New Jersey,” said First Assistant
Attorney General Anne Milgram. “Today’s
arrests take us one step closer to ending
their violent reign by ending the gunfire,
ending the bloodshed, and ending the drug
dealing that has plagued cities in our state.”
“When word gets out that we have arrested
all three leaders on the state committee,
it will stun every SMM member out there,”
said Lieutenant Colonel Gayle Cameron, Deputy
Superintendent of Investigations for the
State Police. “They won’t know
who to trust or when we’ll be coming
through their doors.”
“This
investigation showed the darker side of
gang life,” LTC Cameron added. “Our
detectives gathered evidence of physical
punishments ordered by the leaders to keep
underlings in line. Contrary to music video
myths, none of the gang leaders we arrested
were living the good life. There were no
upscale homes, or luxury cars—nothing
that would seem at all attractive to youth
considering the gang lifestyle—only
violence, fear, jail and the death of friends
and family.”
“We
don’t stop with today’s arrests,’’
said Criminal Justice Division Director
Gregory A. Paw. “We will continue
to develop new leads through intelligence
gathered by the State Police and other agencies,
and we will continue to prosecute members
of these violent street gangs.”
Intelligence
revealed a clearly defined hierarchy controlled
by county O.G.s (Original Gangsters) and
5-star generals who report to the state
committee. The state committee, in turn,
reports to the Bronx, New York, where the
set got its start.
A
key powerbase for SMM is their influence
in the corrections system. A “prison
committee” is in control of inside
operations. The prison committee reports
to the state committee, which sometimes
tasks the prison committee with assaults
on inmates, or protection of inmates. Communication
is often conducted via mobile phones smuggled
to inmates.
This
operation, known as Sex Money Murder North,
began approximately one year ago with the
gathering of intelligence. The first arrests
came on May 3, 2007 when seven members of
SMM were charged with narcotics distribution.
All were from the section of Paterson known
as “Murderville,” and three
of those seven were high-ranking members.
In
July 2006, Operation Nine Connect targeted
the Nine-Trey set of the Bloods, and provided
a rich reward in intelligence, which led
to other investigations, including one that
focused on the SMM presence in central and
southern New Jersey. The initial SMM operation
was brought to a close with a series of
more than two-dozen arrests on February
1, 2007.
Tactical
teams of law enforcement officers backed
up by police canines, undercover detectives,
and intelligence resources located at the
ROIC (Regional Operations Intelligence Center
in State Police Headquarters, West Trenton)
ensured the maximum safety for troopers
and officers making today’s arrests.
Operation
Sex Money Murder North was a cooperative
effort involving six agencies including
the New Jersey State Police, N.J. Division
of Criminal Justice, N.J. State Parole Board,
Passaic County Sheriff’s Department,
Paterson Police Department, and the Newark
Police Department.
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