Gang Members Murdered Govt. Witness After Fireworks Flap: Feds

NEW YORK CITY — A Brooklyn woman's July 2020 shooting death was retaliation by a gang over her service as a government witness in a trial, authorities said.

Four "Ninedee Gang" members are in custody on federal criminal charges ranging from murder-in-aid-of-racketeering, U.S. Attorneys said.

Many of their charges center around the July 7, 2020, shooting of Shatavia Walls. Three days before the shooting, had confronted Ninedee gang members who were shooting off July 4 fireworks near the Pink Houses in East New York, authorities said.

"During that confrontation, defendant Miller called Ms. Walls a 'snitch,' a reference to her prior testimony at a federal trial, and fired a gunshot into the air," court documents state. "In the days following the confrontation, members of the Ninedee Gang, including Green, developed a plan to murder Ms. Walls."

Walls died on July 17, days after the shooting, but her death became an unexpected controversy around Eric Adams' bid to become the Democratic mayoral nominee.

Adams' rival Andrew Yang, as well as Walls' mother, pinned blame on Adams because he encouraged New Yorkers that summer to talk to their neighbors who were shooting off illegal fireworks.

Jonah Allon, a spokesperson for Adams, said following the primary campaign — in which Adams handily beat Yang — that the borough president "stands by what he has consistently said on this issue."

"Whenever we can safely communicate with our neighbors to address quality-of-life issues without involving the police, we should do so," Allon said. "Our neighbors should not engage with individuals they feel are dangerous."

The indictment against the accused Ninedee gang members indicates Walls' death had less to do with fireworks than the election controversy made it seem.

Walls had been shot in the fall of 2017 by a member of the Loopy Gang, which is affiliated with the Ninedees, according to court documents. She testified against this gang member in June 2019, authorities said.

"Prior to that trial, Ms. Walls had been subject to significant witness intimidation, including the public posting of flyers calling her a 'rat' throughout the Pink Houses," court documents state.

Ninedee members plotted to shoot her after the July 4 fireworks confrontation, according to documents. Two members — Green and a "juvenile male" — waited all day on July 7 for Walls to appear before they fatally shot her, records state.

Other members posted online messages that appeared to take give the Ninedee gang credit for the slaying, according to records.

Prosecutors argued that the defendants should remain jailed until trial.