Long Island Gang Member Pleads Guilty To Trying To Kill Rival

On Monday, Hempstead Bloods gang member Billy McLen, also known as "Rizo," pleaded guilty to attempted murder in aid of racketeering and a weapons charge for the attempted murder of a rival gang member in 2014.

In October 2014, the Bloods street gang was at war with members of the Crips street gang from the Parkside section of Hempstead. On October 21, 2014, McLen obtained a handgun from Bloods leader Jonathan Mayzick and later met with Bloods members Naree Barnes and Khalil Brown. Together they proceeded to Peninsula Boulevard near Hempstead High School, where they encountered a Crips gang member. McLen, Brown and Barnes pulled out handguns and shot at their rival, firing numerous times across a major roadway during the late afternoon.

McLen and his fellow gang members then ran to the home of another Bloods member, and McLen placed
several phone calls to Mayzick, reporting the shooting. The calls were intercepted by members of law enforcement, who were monitoring a court-authorized wiretap of Mayzick’s cell phone.

While these calls were taking place, McLen and the others were located and arrested, and the
guns used in the shooting were recovered.

“McLen participated in a premeditated attack in furtherance of the Bloods’ violent feud with the Crips, with the intention of taking another human being’s life,” said United States Attorney Richard Donoghue. “The defendant now faces a lengthy prison term for the choices he made and the actions he took – attempting to kill his victim and endangering other residents of the community.”

When sentenced, McLen faces a mandatory minimum of 10 years in prison and a maximum sentence of life, as well as forfeiture and a fine of up to $250,000. Barnes and Brown previously pled guilty to discharging firearms in furtherance of a crime of violence and were sentenced to 10 years in prison. Mayzick was convicted of conspiracy to distribute crack-cocaine and sentenced to 162 months in prison.

“Motivated by futile gang rivalry, McLen allowed violence to determine his actions, which in turn determined his fate, as he will now spend more than 10 years in prison for attempting to take someone’s life,” said FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge William Sweeney. “Gang violence continues to be the dividing wedge in several of our communities, and the FBI’s Long Island Gang Task Force will not cease until this wedge is permanently removed.”

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