Gangs, organized crime and a historic case in South Carolina

Gangs, organized crime and a historic case in South Carolina

by
Nikie Mayo

| Greenville News

Drugs, money, torture and murder were part of a gang-related organized crime web that has flourished in South Carolina since at least 2017 until now, according to an unsealed federal indictment on Thursday.

The charges that could lead to the dismantling of parts of the venture were announced Thursday afternoon in Columbia, where the case was described as the largest federal extortion conspiracy in South Carolina’s history.

Here’s what we know about the case:

►The company, driven by people including South Carolina inmates, has sworn allegiance to the Insane Gangster Disciples, a branch of a larger gang, the Folk Nation, whose roots go back to Chicago in the 1970s.

►A charge of 147 charges appoints at least 40 defendants from across South Carolina, including several players from Greenville, Anderson and Spartanburg counties.

►The main movements in the group’s daily operations can be traced back to upstate South Carolina, records show. From a storage unit in Greenville to a shooting at Travelers Rest, to the murder of an Anderson inmate, the case has deep connections with the region.

►A woman considered by the gang to be a police informant was kidnapped, tucked into the trunk of a car and flooded before being shot dead in the head in Laurens County, according to federal records.

►The investigation of organized crime began in 2017 and continued until 2020.

► Recently, in January 2020, a man was killed in a house in Piedmont, because a gang member believed that drug money had been stolen in that house.

► The Insane Gangster Disciples – or IGD – created their own language and rules. They used code words and phrases like “6 by 6” – the name of an initiation – and “honeypot” to describe the money they used to buy weapons or bail to get their members out of prison.

► The gang had a clear power structure, with senior “board members”, “governors” to oversee certain regions or activities and less “fighting brothers” or “fighting sisters”.

► For money, the group distributed methamphetamine and heroin, in part for forging ties with an inmate linked to a Mexican drug cartel, according to the federal prosecution. ►The group also agreed and tried to commit theft, extortion, arson and trafficking in firearms. Some members specialize in money laundering and have taught others how to do it, show court documents.

►According to the prosecution, some inmates housed by the South Carolina Penitentiary Department used contraband cell phones to order from prison, murders or other violence that was then handled by outsiders.

►The dozens of defendants in the case include at least six with ties to Greenville, at least two from Anderson County and at least one from Spartanburg County.

► “For anyone who tries to harm the people of South Carolina with violence, intimidation or extortion, we are going after you wherever you are,” said US Attorney Peter McCoy in a prepared statement. “Neither the pandemic nor the prison walls will provide refuge from the full strength of the federal government.”

►People accused in this case face a range of charges, from gun possession charges to homicide charges.

►According to the United States Attorney General, the persons indicted in this case are:

· Edward Gary Akridge, a / k / a “G9,” a / k / a “G9 the Don,” a / k / a / “Eddie Boss,” 28, from Greenville;

· Juan Rodriguez, a / k / a “Fat Boy,” 40, by Woodruff;

Matthew J. Ward, a / k / a “Bones,” 36, from Lexington;

· Rebecca Martinez, 33, from Lexington;

· Cynthia Rooks, 52, from Lexington;

· Richard Ford, 62, from Lexington;

Amber Hoffman, 26, from Lexington;

Samuel Dexter Judy, 29, from Lexington;

· Brian Bruce, 48, of West Columbia;

Montana Barefoot, 25, from Lexington;

· John Johnson, 36, from Gaston;

· Kelly Still, 43, from Windsor;

· Benjamin Singleton, 46, from Lexington;

· Kayla Mattoni, 38, from Lexington;

· Alexia Youngblood, 38, from Lexington;

· Clifford Kyzer, 35, from Lexington;

· Kelly Jordan, 34, from Williamston;

· Mark Edward Slusher, 46, from Lexington;

· Robert Figueroa, 43, from West Columbia;

· Tiffanie Brooks, 36, from Columbia;

Crystal Nicole Bright, 40, from Lexington;

· Brittney Shae Stephens, 32, from Anderson;

· Arian Grace Jeane, 26, from Greenville;

· Lisa Marie Costello, 43, from Gaffney;

· Aaron Corey Sprouse, 29, from Gaffney;

· Matthew Edward Clark, 41, from York;

· James Robert Peterson, a / k / a / “Man Man,” 32, by Gaffney;

· Aaron Michael Carrion, a / k / a “Cap G,” 28, from Lexington;

· Heather Henderson Orrick, 33, from Greenville;

· Virginia Ruth Ryall, 43, of Gastonia, North Carolina;

· Lisa Marie Bolton, 32, from Dallas, North Carolina;

· Catherine Amanda Ross, 28, from Gaffney;

· Brandon Lee Phillips, a / k / a “Lil B,” 36, by Gaffney;

Billy Wayne Ruppe, 55, of Gaffney;

· Windy Brooke George, 21, from Gaffney;

· Jonathan Eugene Merchant, a / k / a / “Merck,” 27, by Laurens;

· Joshua Lee Scott Brown, 23, from Greenville;

· Jennifer Sorgee, 36, of Easley;

· Alex Blake Payne, 28, from Greenville; and

· Sally Williams Burgess, a / k / a “Cricket,” 37, from Greenville.

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