Tampa, Florida
A federal judge sentenced Leon Williams to 17 years and 6 months in prison and Reginald Jones, Jr. to 15 years and 8 months for drug-related crimes, officials stated.
The two were charged for their roles in a conspiracy to distribute cocaine, crack cocaine, and marijuana, and for discharging a firearm during and in relation to that conspiracy.
A federal jury had found Williams, 30, and Jones, 25, guilty on Nov. 15, 2019, according to officials.
According to evidence presented during the two-week trial, Williams and Jones are members of the Bird Gang, a violent street-level drug trafficking organization that has operated in Tampa Park for years, and is responsible for multiple homicides and shootings.
The Bird Gang principally sold drugs at two locations, the Tampa Park housing complex and a nearby boarding house known as the “Blue House,” which the Bird Gang had essentially taken over.
On May 29, 2018, in the middle of the afternoon, Williams and Jones acted as enforcers for the gang by shooting at people whom they believed had been communicating with law enforcement in an effort to stop the gang from selling drugs at the Blue House.
Bullets fired by Williams, Jones, and their associates seriously injured one person, struck a car, and broke windows at a company located two blocks away, where almost 400 people were present at the time of the shooting.