Eight Dougherty County gang members indicted on 54 charges

Aug. 2—ALBANY — Attorney General Chris Carr has announced that the office's Human Trafficking Prosecution Unit has indicted eight individuals for 54 gang and human trafficking charges. A Dougherty County Grand Jury returned the indictment late last week.

"Gangs are behind the crime wave that is affecting Georgia communities, and members are willing to commit horrific acts to help fuel their illegal activities," Carr said in a news release. "We will continue to vigorously prosecute gang members for their crimes, and we look forward to presenting this case — which contends there is a nexus between gangs and human trafficking — in court."

"Conducting human trafficking and criminal street gang investigations are top priorities for the GBI," Georgia Bureau of Investigation Director Vic Reynolds said. "We are committed to investigating crimes that affect the safety of our communities. No human should be subjected to sexual servitude or labor trafficking. We will continue to work with Attorney General Carr's office as they prosecute these horrendous crimes."

An investigation by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation and the Office of the Attorney General's Human Trafficking Prosecution Unit has revealed evidence supporting that, among other things, a victim was physically and sexually assaulted, drugged, held against their will and placed into sexual servitude by these known gang members in order to generate money for their gang. The defendants, individually and together, are alleged to have engaged in repeated criminal activity in the following ways:

—Utilizing methods of control over a trafficking victim by engaging in forcible sex acts against a minor in order to establish psychological dominance and instill fear;

— Photographing and posting a minor for sexual servitude online;

— Transporting a minor for the purposes of sexual servitude;

— Renting hotel rooms for purposes of sexual servitude of a minor;

— Using proceeds from the sexual servitude of a minor to support each other and fellow street gang associates;

— Using proceeds from the sexual servitude of a minor to pay dues to their street gang;

— Using violence and threats of violence to maintain the street gang's control over a minor;

— Promoting and advertising the unity of the street gang by posting images on social media of associates of the enterprise demonstrating the allegiance and prominence of their gang;

— Providing financial support and assistance to the gang's associates.

The defendants indicted by the grand jury are:

— Bryant Hooker (Counts 1, 2, 41-44 and 53)

— Johnny Howard (Counts 1, 2, 37-44 and 54)

— Jamie Rosier (Counts 1,2, and 41-44)

— Treshawn Smith (Counts 1, 2, 33-40 and 49-52)

— Jeston Yates (Counts 1-12 and 18-51)

— Ronaldo Patterson (Counts 1, 2, 12-14, and 33-40)

— Korina Johnson (Counts 1, 2, 15-17 and 24-29)

— Robert Wingfield (Counts 1, 2, and 33-40)

The charges levelled against the suspects include:

— Violation of Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act — Conspiracy to Participate in an Enterprise Through a Pattern of Racketeering Activity;

— Violation of Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act — Conspiracy to Acquiring Money and Property Through a Pattern of Racketeering Activity;

— Violation of Street Gang Terrorism and Prevention Act;

— Rape;

— Aggravated Sodomy;

— Simple Battery;

— Aggravated Sodomy;

— Aggravated Sexual Battery;

— Aggravated Assault;

— False Imprisonment;

— Trafficking of Persons for Sexual Servitude;

— Pimping.

Penalties: If convicted, each count could carry the following penalties:

— Human Trafficking: 25 years to life;

— Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations: 5 to 20 years;

— Simple Battery: up to 12 months;

— False Imprisonment: 1 to 10 years;

— Aggravated Assault: 1 to 20 years;

— Aggravated Sodomy: 25 years to life;

— Rape: 25 years to life;

— Gang Counts: 5 to 20 years.

Gang activity:

The Inglewood Family Gangster Bloods (IFGB), also known as the Inglewood Family Gang (IFG) and The Family, is a subset of the larger criminal street gang known as the Bloods. The Bloods formed in the Los Angeles area in the 1970s as a rival gang to the Crips gang, which had formed a decade earlier in that same region. The Inglewood Family gang joined the Blood's movement and became the Inglewood Family Gangster Bloods.

The city of Inglewood, Calif., located in the Los Angeles metropolitan area, sits to the west of the 110 Freeway. Gangs on this side of the 110 Freeway are considered West Side gangs. The first four sets of IFGB that formed were 77th Street, 80th Street, 92nd Street, and 94th Street. These gangs were based around Normandie Avenue, which runs through Inglewood, but the gang eventually claimed additional territory. The gang claims Darby Park in Inglewood as their central base along with the area around it.

The 77th Street, 80th Street, 92nd Street, and 94th Street subsets of IFGB eventually consolidated into the larger IFGB gang. Gang members incorporated the numbers 77, 80, 92, and 94 in their identifiers to show reverence to the original sets. These individual sets include cliques such as 77th Street, Rollin' 80s, 92nd Street, 94th Street. The Inglewood Family Gang in the Dougherty County area is part of the 80's Street a/k/a Rollin 80's clique.