Syracuse Man Sentenced to More than Eight Years for Membership in 110 Gang

SYRACUSE, NEW YORK – Javon Peterson, age 39, of Syracuse, was sentenced today to serve 98 months in federal prison based on his previous guilty plea for violating the Racketeering Influenced Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO), announced Acting United States Attorney Antoinette T. Bacon, Thomas F. Relford, Special Agent in Charge of the Albany Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and Chief Kenton Buckner, City of Syracuse Police Department.

In imposing sentence, United States District Judge Frederick J. Scullin, Jr. also ordered Peterson to serve three years of supervised release following his term of imprisonment.  As part of his guilty plea in the case, Peterson admitted that he was a member of the 110 Gang operating in the city of Syracuse.  Peterson further admitted that he repeatedly distributed crack cocaine in 110 Gang territory.  During sentencing today, the Court found that 110 Gang members regularly possessed and used firearms to facilitate their drug trafficking, that the defendant was aware of such use, and that he personally possessed a firearm in connection with the offense.

Peterson was one of 14 defendants charged in the case for violating RICO based on their membership in the 110 Gang.  The other 13 men have all pled guilty or been convicted at trial.  Five of the co-defendants were previously sentenced:

• Damani Prince was sentenced to 78 months in prison; 3 year term of supervised release
• Rashawn Wynn was sentenced to 92 months in prison; 3 year term of supervised release
• Davon Sullivan was sentenced to 68 months in prison; 3 year term of supervised release
• Qualik Vaughn was sentenced to 68 months in prison; 3 year term of supervised release
• Jason Lebron was sentenced to 92 months in prison, 3 year term of supervised release 

The remaining defendants in the case await sentencing.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI),  the Syracuse Police Department, and the Gang Violence Task Force, which consists of members of the Syracuse Police, the FBI, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the U.S. Marshals Service, the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), the New York State Police, the New York State Department of Corrections, the New York State Attorney General, and the Onondaga County District Attorney’s Office.  This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Nicolas Commandeur and Kristen Grabowski.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.