5 Members Of Jersey City Public Housing Gang Plead Guilty To Crimes

JERSEY CITY, NJ — Five members and associates of a Jersey City gang associated with the Marion Gardens Housing Complex on Jersey City's west side pleaded guilty this week to racketeering, violent crimes in aid of racketeering, drug trafficking, and firearms offenses, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger announced Thursday.

"Two of these defendants murdered a victim and all the defendants caused senseless violence and shootings and funneled dangerous drugs for personal profit," said Sellinger.

“These men admit they used all methods of criminal activity to defend their turf around the Marion Gardens House Complex, including targeting and murdering rival gang members," said FBI-Newark Special Agent in Charge James E. Dennehy.

Jervon Morris, aka “Sticky,” 35; Kevin Williams, aka “KK,” aka “Kay Kay,” 30; Jakeem Gibson-Madison, aka “Beanz,” 29; K’shawn Jackson, aka “Lil Kay,” 23; and Terick Rogers, aka “Moot,” 32, all of Jersey City, New Jersey, all pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Claire C. Cecchi in Newark federal court to racketeering conspiracy and related crimes, Sellinger's office said.

Morris and Gibson-Madison will be sentenced on Aug. 20, 2024; Rogers and Williams will be sentenced on Aug. 21, 2024; and K’Shawn Jackson will be sentenced on Aug. 22, 2024.

“Neighborhood street gangs hold communities hostage with the constant threat of violence and dangerous proliferation of illicit drugs,” said Dennehy. “This investigation is just one of many cases we are working through the FBI Newark Violent Crimes Task Force with our law enforcement partners."

“Each of these defendants threatened public safety and instilled fear in neighborhoods throughout Jersey City,” Hudson County Prosecutor Esther Suarez said.

According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:

The defendants are all members and associates of the neighborhood street gang associated with the Marion Gardens Housing Complex.

The gang "routinely distributes cocaine and heroin, among other controlled substances, in and around the Marion Gardens Housing Complex. Members and associates of the gang also engaged in acts of violence, including numerous assaults, shootings, and murders, which targeted rival gang members and others."

Crimes have included the following, according to prosecutors:

• On July 28, 2011, Morris and Williams, along with another member of the Marion Gardens street gang, murdered a victim in the area of Gifford Avenue and Bergen Avenue in Jersey City;
• On Nov. 5, 2017, members and associates of the Marion Gardens street gang shot a victim in the area of Van Nostrand Avenue and Bergen Avenue in Jersey City;
• On Feb. 7, 2018, Williams and another member of the Marion Gardens street gang assaulted a victim R.B. in the area of Summit Avenue and Magnolia Avenue in Jersey City;
• On June 30, 2018, Rogers, Jackson, and another member of the enterprise shot five people while celebrating “Meech Day” in honor of a deceased fellow gang member;
• On Jan. 9, 2019, Gibson-Madison, with another member of the enterprise, traveled to the area of Grant Avenue and Ocean Avenue to target a rival gang member, at which time three victims were shot at, two of whom were hit, and
• On June 9, 2019, after being shot at by rival gang member, Kevin Williams brandished a firearm and attempted to shoot back at the rival gang member.

Lakief Grayson, aka “LaLa,” previously pleaded guilty to racketeering conspiracy and related charges in July 2023.

Charges remain pending against Jalil Holmes, aka “Broad Day,” aka “BD,” and Willie Williams, aka “Willz,” both of whom are scheduled to appear in court in the coming weeks.

The investigation was conducted as part of the Jersey City Violent Crime Initiative (VCI), prosecutors said. The VCI was formed in 2018 by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey, the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office, and the Jersey City Police Department, for the sole purpose of combatting violent crime in and around Jersey City.

See a related indictment from 2021 here.