Inside the NYC '59 Brims' gang takedown: Murder, revenge, conspiracy
Inside the 59 Brims Gang Brooklyn takedown
A yearlong investigation in Brooklyn led to the takedown of one of the borough's most ruthless gangs this week. FOX 5 NY's Richard Giacovis has the details.
BROOKLYN - A yearslong investigation in Brooklyn led to the takedown of one of the borough's most ruthless gangs this week.
On Wednesday, Brooklyn DA Eric Gonzalez and NYPD Commissioner Jessica S. Tisch announced a 129-count indictment against dozens of members of the 59 Brims and Bloodhound Brims gangs for nearly 20 shootings, some fatal, in Coney Island and Sheepshead Bay.
The indictment reveals how the gang used music videos, recorded jail calls, and social media posts to express their intent to shoot and kill rival members.
SKIP TO: Who are the Bloodhound Brims? | 129-count indictment | List of alleged crimes | Murder of Bloodhound Brim member
Text messages recovered by the DA’s office show gang members expressing frustration over missed shots, with one text reading it was a "bad drill" because "nobody got hit."
Officials say the gang’s violence began to intensify following the 2021 murder of Bloodhound Brim member Davonte Lewis, fueling a years-long gang war.
Who are the Bloodhound Brims?
Eight of the 14 defendants indicted in the 59 Brims case
Dig deeper:
The Bloodhound Brims are a set of affiliated Bloods, primarily based in Sheepshead Bay and Coney Island. The District Attorney’s Violent Criminal Enterprises Bureau, along with the NYPD’s Gun Violence Suppression Division, have been investigating violence committed by members and associates of the 59 Brims and Bloodhound Brims street gangs.
Some of the defendants, as young as 15-years-old, are among the 14 alleged members charged with murder and their involvement in the ongoing violence.
The charges include the murder of a rival gang member, following a long-term operation that sought to dismantle the dangerous network.
Officials described the takedown as a "relentless fight against dangerous street gangs that terrorize neighborhoods with gun violence."
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Brims 129-count indictment
What we know:
The 129-count indictment details the crimes committed by Brims members and how violence escalated after the 2021 murder of Bloodhound Brim member Davonte Lewis, a.k.a. Dior, outside his Midwood high school, fueling a years-long gang war.
SKIP TO: Who are the Bloodhound Brims? | 129-count indictment | List of alleged crimes | Murder of Bloodhound Brim member
NYPD Commissioner Tisch said the NYPD recovered 18 illegal firearms, from what she says were "from the hands of criminals, including repeat, violent offenders who had no business being back out on the streets in Brooklyn."
2021 Murder of Davonte Lewis
On April 29, 2021, in broad daylight,17-year-old Davonte Lewis, a.k.a. Dior, was shot and killed outside his school in an apparent ambush.
Lewis was believed to be a Bloodhound Brim member.
Police said Malachi Simms 15, and Quran Smith, 16, both from Flatbush, began shooting Lewis as he was leaving Urban Dove Charter School, a high school, on East 21st Street near Avenue K.
Lewis, a first-year student who had recently started a maintenance job with the NYCHA, was shot in the stomach and later died at Kings County Hospital.
Surveillance footage allegedly shows Simms and Smith shooting at Lewis, continuing to fire even after he fell to the ground, and then running away.
When Smith was arrested on May 19, 2021, a loaded .380 Taurus Spectrum pistol fell out of his pants as police put him in handcuffs.
The two teens were charged with second-degree murder, but the years-long war continued even after.
SKIP TO: Who are the Bloodhound Brims? | 129-count indictment | List of alleged crimes | Murder of Bloodhound Brim member
Alleged revenge shooting
On May 2, 2021, just three days after Davonte Lewis was killed, police say Karon Evans, 21, and others allegedly entered rival Folk gang territory near 3405 Foster Avenue.
Evans is accused of shooting a rival gang member multiple times in the stomach, leaving the victim with a lacerated liver.
The victim survived the attack.
Who are the rival gangs?
According to the district attorney, rival gangs of the 59 Brims and Bloodhound Brims include Folk Nation, FNO, WOOO, and GWAY—a subset of the Gorilla Stone Bloods.
While tensions between the defendants' gangs and Folk Nation have existed for years, officials say the rivalry escalated after the April 29, 2021, killing of Bloodhound Brim member Davonte Lewis, also known as Dior.
SKIP TO: Who are the Bloodhound Brims? | 129-count indictment | List of alleged crimes | Murder of Bloodhound Brim member
Alleged crimes
Authorities say the conflict led to numerous additional shootings during the conspiracy.
Timeline:
- On February 8, 2022, Omogoriola Omotosho and another individual allegedly opened fire on a rival gang member at 2926 West 25th Street in Coney Island, nearly hitting residents, including children, in the building lobby.
- On May 29, 2022, defendant Favorite and others shot at a group near a vehicle at West 25th Street and Mermaid Avenue, causing pedestrians, including a family with a young child, to duck for cover as crossfire narrowly missed.
- On October 9, 2022, defendants Ware and an accomplice allegedly shot a rival in front of 2957 Avenue W, striking him in the arm.
- On October 31, 2022, defendants Ware and Ron Thomas allegedly killed drill rapper Jamel Nicholson and wounded his girlfriend in front of 2932 Avenue V, leaving her in critical condition.
- On June 23, 2023, Omotosho allegedly opened fire on a rival gang member outside a sneaker store in Bay Ridge, injuring two innocent bystanders—one inside a car and another in line for sneakers.
How were they caught?
Prosecutors say members of the 59 Brims and Bloodhound Brims openly signaled their intent to kill rival gang members through music videos, recorded jail calls, cellphone evidence, and social media posts.
Text messages between the defendants allegedly show they weren’t just trying to intimidate their rivals but intended to kill or seriously injure them. After a May 29, 2022, shooting that left no one hurt, one message criticized the shooters for failing to put the targets in "critical condition" as planned.