2 Members Of Violent Tampa Bird Gang Sentenced To Federal Prison

TAMPA, FL — Two members of a violent Tampa street gang have been sentenced to federal prison for distributing drugs and shooting at least one person.

On Monday, United States District Judge Steven D. Merryday sentenced Leon Williams, 30, to 17 years and six months in prison and Reginald Jones Jr., 25, to 15 years and eight months in prison for their roles in a conspiracy to distribute cocaine, crack cocaine and marijuana, and for discharging a firearm during a drug deal.

A federal jury found Williams and Jones guilty on Nov. 15, 2019.

According to evidence presented during the two-week trial, Williams and Jones are members of the Bird Gang, a violent street-level drug-trafficking organization that has operated in Tampa for years and is responsible for multiple homicides and shootings.

The Bird Gang mainly sold drugs at two locations, in Tampa Park, a low-income housing complex on the western edge of Ybor City, and a nearby boarding house known as the “Blue House,” which the Bird Gang essentially took over.

On May 29, 2018, in the middle of the afternoon, Williams and Jones acted as enforcers for the gang by shooting at people they believed had been snitching to police who were trying to stop the drug trade.

Bullets fired by Williams, Jones and their associates seriously injured one person, struck a car and broke windows at a company located two blocks away where almost 400 people were working at the time of the shooting.

The case was investigated by the FBI, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Tampa Police Department and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement as part of an ongoing effort to dismantle the Bird Gang.

So far, 30 members of the Bird Gang has been charged, including 18 members charged with firearms and drug offenses in December 2018.

The case was part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force investigation and was prosecuted as part of the Department of Justice’s “Project Safe Neighborhoods” Program, a nationwide strategy to reduce violent crime in communities.