Indictment Charges 30 Sex Money Murder Gang Members in South Georgia
UPDATE: FBI said that the 2 remaining suspects that were wanted have been captured. Both were arrested late Thursday, May 15th in the Savannah area.
Original Post:
A sweeping federal indictment unsealed in the Southern District of Georgia has charged 30 alleged members and associates of the Sex Money Murder (SMM) gang with a range of serious crimes. The eight-count indictment includes charges of racketeering (RICO) conspiracy, murder in aid of racketeering, conspiracy to commit murder in aid of racketeering, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, and related firearm and drug trafficking offenses.
According to court documents and statements made in court, the SMM gang, a derivative of the Bloods, engaged in extreme violence to enforce gang rules, including the murder of a 19-year-old member who wanted to leave and the attempted murder of another member for alleged homosexual activity in jail. The indictment also alleges that SMM members profited from trafficking significant quantities of methamphetamine, cocaine, and heroin throughout the Savannah metropolitan area. Furthermore, the gang is accused of orchestrating sophisticated fraud schemes targeting federal COVID-19 relief and unemployment benefit programs, resulting in intended losses exceeding $850,000.
Matthew Galeotti, Head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, stated, “As alleged, the Sex Money Murder gang, a derivative of the nationally known Bloods gang, brutally enforced its purported rules, killing a 19-year-old member, and engaged in rampant drug trafficking and federal program fraud to enrich themselves. We will not rest until every criminal organization like SMM that wreaks havoc on our streets and prison systems and exploits programs meant to support vulnerable populations are dismantled. Thank you to every federal, state, and local law enforcement agency that came together to dismantle this criminal enterprise.”
Acting United States Attorney Tara M. Lyons added, “Today’s indictment is an important step in ending gang violence on our streets and in our prisons. My office will continuously work with our law enforcement partners to ensure public safety.”
The indictment details a specific instance on February 24, 2020, where Byron Hopkins and other SMM members allegedly intercepted a young member after school, drove him to a rural area, and murdered him for expressing a desire to leave the gang and accusing Hopkins of sexual relations with a minor. The victim was lured to his death by his “big brother” in the gang under the pretense of an important meeting.
Court documents also reveal that SMM has spread from New York to areas across the East Coast, including Georgia, operating both inside and outside correctional facilities. The indictment alleges that seven of the defendants committed or ordered the charged crimes from within Georgia Department of Corrections (GDOC) prisons, utilizing contraband cell phones to orchestrate their criminal activities.
If convicted, the defendants face severe penalties, including up to life in prison or the death penalty for murder in aid of racketeering and related firearm charges, up to life in prison for racketeering and drug conspiracy, up to 30 years for wire fraud conspiracy, and up to 20 years for conspiracy to commit murder in aid of racketeering.
The extensive investigation involved the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, U.S. Department of Labor, U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Division, Georgia Bureau of Investigation, and Georgia Department of Corrections, with significant assistance from numerous other federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies. The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Lisa M. Thelwell of the Criminal Division’s Violent Crime and Racketeering Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Frank M. Pennington III for the Southern District of Georgia.
