PROVIDENCE, R.I. — In a matter of hours, a Superior Court jury on Thursday convicted a Bucket East gang member of plotting with his associates to shoot a rival in a brazen midday shooting in downtown Providence.
The jury found Joseph "Black" Segrain, 34, guilty on all counts: assault with a dangerous weapon; discharging a firearm while committing a crime of violence that ended in injury; conspiracy; drive-by shooting; and two firearms offenses related to the shooting of Mathew DePina at noon Jan. 9, 2017, on Memorial Boulevard, just a short distance from the Licht Judicial Complex.
DePina had given his cousin, Bucket West member Carlos "Los" DePina, a ride to the courthouse that morning, when Segrain and 11 other Bucket West gang members descended on the courthouse.
Witnesses said Segrain sat himself in the midst of the DePina group in the back of Judge Robert D. Krause's courtroom, and tensions rose. Segrain made gestures, one like slicing a neck, after being asked to leave the courtroom.
Court security ushered the Bucket East gang members out of the courthouse. The group proceeded to film a Facebook live video threatening Carlos DePina on the veranda as the DePinas watched on their phones inside.
“[Expletive] West. [Expletive] my cousin. [Expletive] both my cousins,” Mathew DePina, who is not gang-affiliated, recalled the men taunting.
Court security called Providence police to escort the DePinas to their car about an hour later, but Carlos DePina refused, a witness said. Mathew DePina alone went to retrieve his Chevy Impala, finding himself "nose to nose" with a dark SUV driven by Segrain, he said.
He was driving to pick up his cousin when he noticed he was being tailed by a Camry and then Segrain's BMW, he said. He watched as the SUV "ate" stop lights after DePina turned onto Memorial Boulevard. The SUV pulled along side him and the next thing he heard were gunshots, he said. He'd been hit in the neck, back and shoulder, and crashed his car on the Crawford Street bridge.
Prosecutors described Segrain, of Johnston, as the pied piper who led much younger Bucket East gang members in a plot to shoot Carlos DePina.
"The ring leader. The shot caller," Special Assistant Attorney General Peter Roklan said Thursday in closing arguments, pointing at Segrain.
Segrain's defense lawyer, Judith Crowell, had argued that her client was being implicated by "feral children" interested in keeping themselves out of jail at all costs.
"None of those young men live by the the rules that govern civilized society ... ," Crowell said in closing. "They all were successful in gaining their freedom by assisting the state in this case."
Crowell asked jurors to rely on Bucket East gang member Nathan Tek's testimony Wednesday that he alone was the shooter, and that he shot DePina with two separate guns. Roklan, who prosecuted the case with John Moreira, dismissed Tek's testimony as "ludicrous."
Tek, 20, of Pawtucket, pleaded guilty to conspiring with six others to seriously injure DePina and was sentenced to serve 30 years in prison. John Laboy, 20, of Central Falls, has pleaded not guilty and is awaiting trial.
Also indicted in the case are Eugene McClain, 28, of 157 Camden Ave., Providence; Jose “Pookie” Morales, of North Providence; Eugene McClain, 28, of Providence; and Alexander “Bird” DeJesus, of Pawtucket. McClain, Morales and DeJesus all pleaded guilty to conspiracy and are awaiting sentencing. A statewide grand jury last month indicted DeJesus in the September 2016 murder of 23-year-old Dylan Contreras in Pawtucket.
The indictment listed Ardeci Tomas and Brandon Bates as unindicted co-conspirators, along with two unnamed juveniles. Five of Segrain's alleged co-conspirators testified against him.
Providence Detective Theodore Michael was the lead investigator in the case, with assistance from Detectives Angelo Avant and Timothy McGann.
Segrain faces up to 115 years in prison at his sentencing.
— kmulvane@providencejournal.com
(401) 277-7417
On Twitter: @kmulvane