Federal prosecutors on Tuesday unsealed drug trafficking and firearm indictments against 25 accused members of the G Block and Family Mob street gangs in Minneapolis, targeting open-air narcotics markets that officials say fueled a sharp escalation of violent crime across the city.
Federal Indictments Target Minneapolis Gang Factions and Open-Air Markets
Federal law enforcement officials on Tuesday announced major indictments targeting two criminal factions that carved out drug territory along high-traffic corridors in Minneapolis. The cases, unsealed by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Minnesota, charge 25 accused members with drug trafficking conspiracy and firearm offenses dating as far back as 2022.
The crackdown focuses on the G Block and Family Mob gangs, whose members range in age from 24 to 70 years old. Law enforcement arrested 12 of the defendants on Tuesday, while others await transfer from state to federal custody. One suspect, 50-year-old Fronta Lontrell Miller of the G Block faction, remains at large.
According to startribune.com, the network of open-air markets operated in plain view along well-traveled routes, distributing fentanyl, methamphetamine, and cocaine.
The Family Mob Corridor and Connected Violence
Federal authorities zeroed in on the Family Mob—a gang with roots stretching back to the 1990s—for running open-air drug operations along Lake Street and Park Avenue S. U.S. Attorney Daniel Rosen stated that the organization’s drug enterprise contributed to a general escalation of violence, including deadly violence in the city of Minneapolis.
The latest federal charging documents tie two Family Mob members directly to a fatal shooting stemming from a drug dispute. Prosecutors state that on September 14, Trevon Harris and Deangelo Martez Davenport held two drug dealers at gunpoint along 15th Avenue South and Lake Street East. Davenport allegedly pistol-whipped one victim repeatedly and shot the other in the leg, resulting in the victim’s death. Both suspects also face second-degree murder charges in Hennepin County District Court.
The indictment adds nine new names to a Family Mob prosecution list that already included five alleged members indicted in February on fentanyl-related charges. Other defendants named in the federal conspiracy case include Maricus Antonio Leroy Moore, Larnell Douglas Wren, Richard Payton III, Garyegus Lealexandria Cooper, Emmett Duane Williams, Mortez Lashi Crumble, and Eddie Dersaill Brown, each facing fentanyl distribution conspiracy counts.
G Block Operations and International Drug Parallels
Alongside the Family Mob charges, federal prosecutors targeted the G Block faction for operating open-air markets along East 19th Street and Nicollet Avenue S. Eleven G Block members face controlled substance distribution conspiracy charges, with court documents accusing defendants including Amani Xavier Hudson Sr., Kelley Christine Hudson, Jerry Wayne Jones, Miller, and Tanell Kinte Prempeh of conspiring to traffic at least five kilograms of cocaine and 400 grams of fentanyl.
International reporting from Ecuador highlights how drugs have been pouring into Ecuador from neighbouring Colombia and Peru, the world’s two largest cocaine producers, with home-grown gangs partnering with Mexican cartels and the Albanian mafia to smuggle narcotics onward into global distribution networks.
Back in Minneapolis, authorities continue their search for the remaining at-large suspects as the federal cases proceed through the court system.
