Press Release
☷Five Members of Violent Chester Pennsylvania Drug Gang Plead Guilty to Multiple Narcotics and Firearm Offenses
Federal Bureau of Investigation ( By Press Release office)
Apr 29,2022
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Five Members of Violent Chester , PA Drug Gang Plead Guilty to Multiple Narcotics and Firearm Offenses PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jennifer Arbittier Williams announced that Issac Barrett , 35; Kaleaf Gilbert , 30; Darnell Bell , 31; Terrance Womack , 35; and Jamar Bright , 33; all of Chester , PA , pleaded guilty this week before United States District Court Chief Judge Juan R . Sanchez to charges including conspiracy to distribute crack , cocaine and heroin , as well as related narcotics and gun offenses . In October 2019 , two dozen defendants were arrested pursuant to parallel Indictments of rival drug gangs that operated for years in and around the city of Chester , Delaware County: the “William Penn” drug trafficking group , which controlled the territory surrounding the Chester Housing Authority’s William Penn Homes , and their rivals the “3rd Bone” drug trafficking group , which held power in the area of 3rd and Lamokin Streets . This week , the remaining five William Penn defendants pleaded guilty , wrapping up the years - long investigation and prosecution , and ending this violent drug gang’s reign of terror in the greater Chester community . The defendants will be sentenced in August 2022 , when defendants Barrett and Gilbert will face at least 15 years in prison due to the statutory mandatory minimum penalties on their drug and gun convictions . As established during their plea hearings , defendant Issac Barrett served as the group’s source of supply , ensuring that his co - conspirators had a constant stock of crack , heroin , and cocaine , which his co - conspirators would then sell to their customer base of drug addicts . Co - defendant Kaleaf Gilbert managed a shared “trap phone” or drug phone , which the group , including co - defendants Bell and Womack , used to provide their joint customer base with around - the - clock access to crack and other controlled substances . Not only did the William Penn defendants poison the Chester community with dangerous narcotics , they also used violence and threats of violence in furtherance of their drug trafficking crimes , including against the rival 3rd Bone gang . In February 2019 , a dispute between the two gangs came to a head in an exchange of gunfire between Barrett and Gilbert and three 3rd Bone members in the parking lot of a downtown Chester bar , which resulted in the shooting and hospitalization of one of the rival gang members . Subsequent wiretapped calls with Gilbert’s phone revealed Gilbert attempting to get rid of the gun used in the shooting by throwing it on the roof of an adjacent building , trying to hide his bullet - ridden car , and cavalierly talking about the shooting and potential paralysis of the 3rd Bone member . Texts recovered from Barrett’s phone showed him placing a $15 , 000 bounty on a rival gang member whom he suspected was responsible for the shooting . “These defendants and their co - conspirators in the William Penn gang , together with the defendants in 3rd Bone , terrorized the Chester community for years with their drug dealing and associated violence , ” said U . S . Attorney Williams . “Barrett sourced and supplied dangerous narcotics , and Gilbert managed the distribution ‘business’ through a cell phone , a business which eventually led to a violent shooting . Thanks to the efforts of investigators at the FBI and DEA , the 3rd Bone and William Penn drug operations have been permanently shut down , making the streets safer and improving the quality of life for the Chester community . ”This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods ( PSN ) , a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone . The Department of Justice reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals , directing all U . S . Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal , state , local , and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective , locally - based strategies to reduce violent crime . The case was investigated jointly by the Federal Bureau of Investigations and the Drug Enforcement Administration , working closely the Chester City Police Department , and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Matthew T . Newcomer and Meaghan A . Flannery .
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