4 Gang Members Plead Guilty In Shooting Of Shamoya McKenzie

MOUNT VERNON, NY — Four gang members have pleaded guilty to participating in the murder of 13-year-old Shamoya McKenzie, killing the innocent girl in 2016 while shooting at a rival gang member.

At about 2:28 p.m. Dec. 31, McKenzie and her mother were driving along East Third Street in Mount Vernon. McKenzie was in the front passenger seat of her mother's car. Prince Scott was sitting in the back seat. Scott was struck twice by gunfire, and one bullet that smashed through the rear passenger window struck McKenzie in the head.

Pleading guilty were: David Hardy, also known as Mooka; Marquis Collier; Jermaine Hughley, also known as Blacks; and Sincere Savoy, also known as Bitty. They are members of the Goonies gang, Audrey Strauss, the Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York said in the announcement.

"On December 31, 2016, David Hardy, Marquis Collier, Jermaine Hughley, and Sincere Savoy shot at a rival gang member, injuring him and killing 13-year-old Shamoya McKenzie, cutting short her young and promising life," Strauss said. "Now all four of them face significant time in prison for their participation in senseless gun violence."

Hardy pleaded guilty Thursday, Collier pleaded guilty on Aug. 14, Hughley pleaded guilty on Sept. 10, and Savoy pleaded guilty on Sept. 1. All four will be sentenced by United States District Judge Nelson S. Román, to whom the case is assigned.

Between 2007 and 2017, all four were members of a racketeering enterprise known as the "Goonies," prosecutors said.

In order to fund the enterprise, protect and expand its interests, and promote its standing, members and associates of the Goonies committed, conspired, attempted, and threatened to commit acts of violence, including murder, attempted murder, and robbery; they conspired to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute narcotics; and they obtained, possessed, and used firearms, including by brandishing and firing them.

The Goonies have been engaged in a long-standing and violent feud with several rival Mount Vernon street gangs, including, among others, the “Boss Playa Family,” the “Get Money Gangstas,” the “Gunnas,” and the “Much Better Gang,” among others, prosecutors said.

McKenzie was a rising basketball star in Mount Vernon.

SEE ALSO:

• Gang-related Shooting Led to Death of 13-Year-Old
• Mount Vernon To Retire Shamoya McKenzie's Basketball Jersey
• UConn Women Honor NY Teen Hoop Standout Killed in Mount Vernon
• Accused Shooter a Former City Employee