6 Bloods Members Charged In Connection To Local Drug Ring: Feds

CENTRAL ISLIP, NY - Six people associated with the Bloods street gang were arrested and charged in connection for their participation in distributing drugs in Babylon and surrounding neighborhoods, the U.S. attorney announced on Friday.

According to the U.S. attorney, the following people were charged in an 11-count indictment in federal court in Central Islip on Friday:

• Rashaan Corbin, 23, of Mastic
• Miles Lamarca, 21, of Babylon
• Sharied Legette, 22, of Wyandanch
• Alex Murphy, 33, of West Babylon
• Taieek Smith, 23, of Wyandanch
• Andre Turner, 29, of Wyandanch

All six were either members or associates of the Bloods street gang, the U.S. attorney said.

Lamarca was arrested on August 15 and will be arraigned Friday afternoon before United States Magistrate Judge A. Kathleen Tomlinson, the U.S. attorney said.

Legette and Turner were arrested last month and ordered detained, the U.S. attorney said.

Smith is in state custody and will be arraigned at a future date on the superseding indictment with Corbin and Murphy, who were charged in the original indictment in March 2019, the U.S. attorney said.

Between March 2013 and April 2019, the group distributed heroin, fentanyl, fentanyl analogues, cocaine or crack cocaine in and around Babylon, the U.S. attorney said.

They often used firearms to protect their turf and narcotics from members of other street gangs, according to the U.S. attorney.

"Members and associates of street gangs go to great lengths to defend their respective territories, at times engaging in acts of violence to prevent others from invading the areas they control. When narcotics are involved, the stakes are even higher," FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge William Sweeney. "The people of our communities deserve to live in a society that is free from violence. The FBI will continue to aggressively investigate these cases and work together with our partners in disrupting and dismantling this type of illegal activity."

During the course of the investigation, members of law enforcement seized more than $120,000 in cash, five semi-automatic handguns, drug paraphernalia and materials used to package narcotics for distribution, according to the U.S. attorney.

"Drugs, gangs and guns are a dangerous combination, putting our communities at grave risk," United States Attorney Richard Donoghue said.

If convicted, Corbin, Legette, Murphy and Smith face a maximum of life imprisonment; Lamarca and Turner face up to 40 years in prison.

"Gang activity often goes hand-in-hand with illicit drug sales and the illegal possession of weapons, which are used as protection for narcotics operations like this one," Suffolk County District Attorney Timothy Sini said. "Make no mistake: these defendants, who are members and associates of the violent Bloods street gang, were driving crime in a variety of ways in our communities, and these indictments put an end to that enterprise."