Gang Member Admits Racketeering and Firearms Charges
NEWARK, N.J. — A member of the Rollin’ 60s Neighborhood Crips gang admitted to his role in a racketeering conspiracy and to possessing firearms and ammunition as a convicted felon, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger announced today.
Amir Warden, aka “Stamps,” aka “Killa,” 31, pleaded guilty on Feb. 22, before U.S. District Judge Susan D. Wigenton in Newark federal court to two counts of a superseding information that charged him with Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) conspiracy and possession of firearms and ammunition by a convicted felon.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
From 2015 through Sept. 22, 2022, Warden was a member of the Rollin’ 60s Neighborhood Crips, a criminal enterprise responsible for acts of violence and the distribution of controlled substances in the District of New Jersey and elsewhere. Warden held a leadership role within the enterprise and conspired with other members and associates to distribute controlled substances. On Aug. 19, 2019, he distributed heroin. On Sept. 29, 2022, Warden, a convicted felon, knowingly possessed three loaded firearms, three high-capacity drum magazines, and approximately 1,300 rounds of assorted ammunition.
Warden faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 on the racketeering conspiracy and a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 on the firearms charge. Sentencing is scheduled for June 25.
U.S. Attorney Sellinger credited special agents of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Cheryl Ortiz; special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Tammy Tomlins; and special agents of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Bryan Miller, with the investigation leading to the guilty plea. He also thanked investigators of the U.S. Marshals Service, under the direction of Marshal Juan Mattos, the Irvington Police Department, under the direction of Police Division Director Tracy Bowers, the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Acting Prosecutor Theodore N. Stephens II, the Newark Police Department, under the direction of Public Safety Director Fritz Fragé, the Bloomfield Police Department, under the direction of Director of Public Safety Samuel A. DeMaio, the Essex County Sheriff’s Office, under the direction of Sheriff Armando B. Fontoura, the East Orange Police Department, under the direction of Chief Phyllis L. Bindi, the Elizabeth Police Department, under the direction of Police Director Earl J. Graves, the Edison Police Department, under the direction of Chief of Police Tom Bryan, the New Jersey State Police, under the direction of Col. Patrick J. Callahan, the Union County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Prosecutor William A. Daniel, the Spotswood Police Department, under the direction of Chief Philip Corbisiero and the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation Fugitive and Missing Person Task Force.
This case is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Francesca Liquori of the Special Prosecutions Unit.
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