#video #Feds - Season 2 - Episode 05: Gangbuster
Category
📺
TVTranscript
00:01In 2015, there were horrific crimes spreading across South Florida.
00:07The violence was extraordinary.
00:10Brutal murders, home evasion robberies, drive-by shootings, random shootings.
00:15I want who did this to my son to pay for it.
00:19We didn't know who was causing all this violence, but they were willing to kill anyone that wanted to work
00:25against them.
00:26My friend died for nothing. He died for nothing.
00:30A lot of these victims were anti-law enforcement.
00:33I had to show them I'm human. I'm just like them.
00:37One of them said, I didn't think my life mattered.
00:41It was heartbreaking.
00:43I get this phone call.
00:44This is Jessica Boucher with the FBI.
00:47I was like, FBI? What's going on?
00:50This case is my life.
00:52I wake up and I work it.
00:55I sleep. I dream about it.
00:57I will not stop.
00:58Sit me on the stand.
01:00Give me the Bible.
01:01I'm going to bring my own.
01:02I wish them no luck in hell.
01:06I'm FBI Special Agent Jessica Box.
01:11When serious crime strikes, the special agents of the FBI answer the call.
01:18Fidelity.
01:19Bravery.
01:20Integrity.
01:31A lot of people look at Florida from television.
01:35They see the lights, the palm trees, the beaches, and they just think that this is paradise.
01:46That's how they lure you in.
01:48But once you get to the heart of Florida, where the heartbeat is, this is a concrete jungle.
01:56You got a lot of lions, tigers, and bears.
02:02So tread light and be careful.
02:05Everything that glitters isn't gold here.
02:16As a detective, you see these violent crimes spreading out throughout our county, and you're
02:21starting to feel like there's some connection.
02:24You definitely fear that this is getting out of control.
02:29Coming up through law enforcement, I worked a lot of undercover work, but I'd never seen
02:33anything like this.
02:35We didn't know who they were, but they were terrorizing the county.
02:41Numerous different police departments were involved.
02:43Each one had one small aspect of it, to just overwhelming state authorities.
02:48So based upon that, I put out inquiries to the FBI as to who might be available to work
02:53on these cases.
02:55I was assigned a young female by the name of Jessica Box.
03:00I worked as an intelligence analyst for the FBI.
03:04I wanted to do more.
03:06I did not want to just sit on the sidelines and be on the computer all day.
03:09And I decided that I really had to be an agent.
03:11That was really what my heart was telling me.
03:13So this case was really what I call my baby.
03:16It was my first investigation as a brand new agent.
03:20Agent Box was faced with taking over all the evidence that we had accumulated up to this
03:25point.
03:26I essentially took a 5,000 piece puzzle and dumped it in Jessica's lap.
03:33I was very nervous.
03:35I spent about a full week, without exaggeration, organizing files.
03:40We had over 49 different crimes across South Florida in a very small period of time.
03:47I went through detail after detail, case by case, trying to put the pieces to the puzzle together.
04:01On November 4th, 2015, a shooting took place in a garage in a neighborhood called Habitat in
04:08Lauderhill.
04:09Inside the garage was Roderick McCullough, a small-time marijuana dealer, Veronica Gilchrist,
04:14and her friend Donald Johnston, also known as Eddie.
04:18Eddie was the neighborhood's champ.
04:21He was just that person where you could go there for anything.
04:25He'll give you the clothes off his back.
04:29I used to call Eddie my guardian angel.
04:32As long as I'm near Eddie, I don't have nothing to worry about.
04:38That night, a little bit after 10, I'm eating my pizza.
04:44Eddie is standing not too far from me.
04:48Rod is close by me.
04:51And he begins to stutter.
04:53And I'm like, boy, get the words out your mouth.
04:56He's stoo-stoo.
04:58And I'm like, but when I look at him, you can see the garage doors just, like, lift up.
05:04They came in with no mask.
05:06They came in shooting with AK-47s.
05:10I was standing in the middle of crossfire.
05:14I fall, boom, then Rod falls, boom.
05:17And the last person standing is Eddie.
05:21I remember him, like, reaching in his pockets
05:23and pulling out some money and throwing it.
05:25Like, get what you want, take what you want,
05:27so you guys can leave.
05:29And they shot him.
05:32I just remember them standing on the back of my legs
05:37and shooting me close range,
05:38to the point your body becomes numb.
05:42I prayed to God, and I remember just screaming out my son's name
05:47and feeling like I let him down.
05:50And one of them came and said in my ear,
05:53bitch, stop praying.
05:55Stop praying.
05:56I remember thinking, this is how you about to die.
06:01This is how you're going to go, riddled with bullets.
06:05One of them walked over, stood on her back,
06:08with both feet and pointed an AK-47 down straight at her back
06:12and fired their weapon.
06:13Her back fell laid open.
06:15Due to having sclerosis as a child,
06:18she had a titanium rod in her back,
06:20and the bullet actually bounced out,
06:22and she survived.
06:23That is the only reason she is walking and living right now.
06:28When law enforcement arrived on scene that night,
06:30Donald Johnston was still alive,
06:32and he was rushed to the hospital.
06:34He was the son of one of our employees
06:36at the Broward Sheriff's Office,
06:38Mrs. Kathy Wilson.
06:44At 11.15, I got a phone call from one of his friends.
06:50He said, Mom, Eddie's been shot.
06:53He went to the hospital.
06:55They took us to the critical care unit.
06:58He was laying there.
07:02I can't remember how many bags of blood he went through,
07:05and they said, It's just not staying in.
07:07It's not staying in.
07:09I was talking to him,
07:11and his eyes were somewhat closed,
07:13but glazed a bit, you know?
07:17And then he started biting his lip,
07:20and the nurse saw it,
07:21and she said, Stop, stop, stop.
07:24We have to put him back under.
07:25He's coming out.
07:25He's coming out.
07:26And to see him in that pain was hard.
07:30And to see him like that was hard.
07:36To know that he was alive and he heard me
07:40and that he was actually biting his lip,
07:43don't know if he was trying to answer me,
07:48that brings me comfort
07:50because he heard me, he heard my voice.
07:52He heard a familiar voice.
07:57I took a picture of him,
07:58so I got the last picture of him being alive.
08:07Seeing Kathy and imagining what it must feel like
08:11for a mom to lose her child is heartbreaking.
08:17My brother, it was one of those situations
08:20where he was in the wrong place at the wrong time.
08:23I wanted to know why him,
08:27with everything that he does in the community,
08:29he's a good person,
08:31and the person that instilled
08:34those morals and those values,
08:36those Christian values in me,
08:38and he honestly, he kept it up
08:40all throughout his adulthood.
08:42So I'm like, why would someone be gunning after him?
08:44It just didn't make sense.
08:48It made no sense
08:50why they were targeting this specific group.
08:52There were not tons of money
08:54and tons of drugs in this garage.
08:56I told the police.
08:57I didn't know who those guys were.
09:00There was around about $1,200 in the garage.
09:04They left that money on the ground.
09:07So it's like, what was the point?
09:09My friend died for nothing.
09:10He died for nothing.
09:14Roderick McCullough survived the shooting,
09:16but when we went to speak with him,
09:18he was very uncooperative,
09:20claimed he didn't know anything
09:21and he didn't know why.
09:23So while processing the crime scene,
09:26we found multiple shell casings,
09:27but this was a mystery.
09:29We didn't know who the shooters were.
09:31All we knew was that
09:33there were two gunmen
09:34and they didn't wear masks.
09:37So I started looking through the cases
09:38where there were a lot of potential eyewitnesses.
09:49On October 3rd, 2015,
09:51there was a peewee football game.
09:55It was a park in Lauderhill Lakes,
09:57just like a typical Saturday afternoon.
10:00At the time, there was hundreds of kids.
10:03Peewee football games were actively going on
10:05with their parents and everybody watching.
10:07I was told that there was over 300 people here.
10:12On that date,
10:14several gunmen walked into the park
10:16in broad daylight,
10:17with no face coverings,
10:20nothing to hide their identity,
10:22walked up to a father
10:24who was with his children
10:27and shot him point blank.
10:32They stole his money
10:33and they ran back across
10:35into their car and took off.
10:37They shot Zoe Gotti twice in the stomach,
10:40but miraculously,
10:41he was able to survive.
10:43I spoke to so many people on the street
10:46who were reluctant to talk to me.
10:50Out of 300 people,
10:51not one person came forward
10:52to say what they saw.
10:54No one wanted to talk to law enforcement.
10:56That was the first time I realized
10:57how hard my job was going to be
10:59if no one would step up and say,
11:01these people shot someone in broad daylight
11:03and my children were running around.
11:07But I started to see there was a clear pattern.
11:11Zoe Gotti and Roderick McCullen
11:12were both people that had a reputation
11:15to deal drugs in the Danie Beach
11:17and Hollywood area.
11:18What we realized is that these gunmen
11:21were specifically targeting drug dealers
11:23and people that they perceived
11:24to be law enforcement unfriendly
11:26so that these people
11:28wouldn't testify against them.
11:30We noticed this pattern
11:31over and over again.
11:33And as time went on,
11:34I found a connection
11:35that would change the course
11:37of the entire investigation.
11:50On November 3rd, 2015,
11:53myself and my partner,
11:54Walt Foster,
11:55we got notified by supervisors
11:58of a home invasion,
12:00a robbery,
12:01where one of the victims
12:03had been shot.
12:06By the time we arrived on the scene,
12:07the victim had already been
12:08transported to the hospital.
12:11A.J. Bosfield was one of those kids
12:13that grew up in a bad environment.
12:15He was one of those kids
12:16that you thought you could change him
12:18if you gave him some options
12:20and talk him out of being on the streets.
12:23From what we were told
12:24from the witnesses on scene,
12:26Mr. Bosfield was cooperating.
12:28It didn't matter to them
12:29that he was cooperating.
12:30He was still placed onto the ground
12:33of the bedroom and shot.
12:37He was pronounced deceased at the hospital.
12:40He was not a threat to anyone
12:42and he was executed by these robbers.
12:46This murder took place 24 hours
12:48before the murder of Donald Johnston.
12:51We knew that we were dealing with criminals
12:54that were out for more than just product.
12:57They were looking to make a name for themselves
12:58and they were looking for street credit.
13:01There were drive-by shootings happening
13:04on what seemed like a daily basis.
13:06It was clear this was not the works
13:08of just a few gunmen.
13:10We were dealing with a gang working together.
13:12They were spreading across South Florida.
13:15We didn't know how far extended,
13:17but we knew we had to do something fast.
13:20At the A.J. Bosfield homicide,
13:23we found two 380 cartridge casings.
13:27I went through every piece of evidence
13:30across many cases from each crime scene
13:33that had casings.
13:35And I found a very likely match.
13:43This was the residence of Corey Billings.
13:47Corey Billings was a known drug dealer
13:50in the Hollywood area.
13:51On November 25, 2015,
13:53the car parked right where we are.
13:58Two gunmen went inside.
14:01The Corey Billings crime scene was so heinous.
14:04I mean, Corey Billings was laid out on the floor,
14:07shot several times in the head.
14:09There were nine handgun casings
14:11and eight were a 380 caliber.
14:14As law enforcement went in to clear the residence,
14:17they discovered that there was, in fact,
14:20a robust security system in place.
14:23We knew we needed to see exactly what footage was on it
14:26as quickly as possible.
14:28When Hollywood told me they had video
14:30of the Corey Billings home invasion robbery,
14:32I was very excited.
14:34To say the least,
14:35I thought this could be the breakthrough in the case.
14:37I dropped everything, got everybody together,
14:39and had a TV set up for them and everything.
14:45But when they played the video,
14:47I realized that this was a video
14:49that I wouldn't want anyone else to watch.
14:52The violence and the nature of this crime
14:55was absolutely ruthless.
14:59You can see Corey Billings walk out a customer.
15:05The first gunman comes in
15:11and shoots at Corey Billings and the dog.
15:14You see the second man come in.
15:17They're searching the house.
15:20We're assuming he's asking Corey Billings,
15:23where's the money, where's the drugs?
15:26And in the corner here,
15:27you can see that the first gunman
15:29is searching through the kitchen.
15:30As the first gunman walks out,
15:32he's trying to clear what we think
15:34is a jam in his firearm.
15:36And Corey Billings, we assume,
15:38thinks it's safe to get up.
15:44But the gunman tells him to get back down.
15:47We think Corey Billings was laying on the ground,
15:49clearly obeying the orders that he was given,
15:51probably pleading for his life.
15:58And he's just shot as he's laying there.
16:05Cold-blooded execution.
16:10Corey Billings was severely brain damaged
16:12and sadly passed away in 2024.
16:17While the video was a great breakthrough in our case,
16:20it's also torturous because the video was grainy enough
16:24to where we couldn't 100% positively ID somebody enough
16:28to place him into custody.
16:31When you go through a video like that
16:33for evidentiary purposes,
16:34you slow it down and you go through it
16:36frame by frame by frame.
16:38Eventually, we picked up little nuances.
16:41We saw that the second person
16:43was possibly communicating with somebody outside
16:45as he would occasionally turn his head.
16:48We could see that there was a third person
16:50standing in the doorway.
16:52We couldn't see who it was at all.
16:55Just a shadow.
16:58Hollywood Police Department went and recovered
17:00fingerprints from that doorway
17:02and sent it to the lab.
17:05One of those fingerprints came back
17:07for a positive hit on Eric Hunter.
17:12Eric Hunter was very well-known
17:14on the streets of South Florida.
17:16He'd been a thorn inside of law enforcement
17:18since he was an adolescent.
17:21When I went through his social media,
17:24it was clear that he had a group following.
17:29From there, we started to build our network
17:32of potential gang members.
17:38I went and collected information
17:42on literally over 100 people.
17:48But the same three people
17:50were always together.
17:52Eric Hunter,
17:53Derek Slade,
17:55and Marcello Gordon.
17:56It was easy to see that they were
17:58the three pieces of glue
18:00that held this gang together
18:02and that Eric Hunter
18:03was most likely a leader.
18:05All this for me?
18:06All this for me.
18:07All this for me?
18:08We hit the streets
18:09and we talked to a lot of people.
18:11They were telling us that
18:12even as a young kid,
18:14he wanted to control people.
18:16He wanted to call the shots.
18:18Eric Hunter had this reputation
18:20that he was untouchable.
18:22Got messed up in the crossfire.
18:25And guess what?
18:27Ain't no one till the ball dropped it.
18:30The word on the street
18:31was that he must have had
18:32black magic promoting
18:34and assisting him.
18:37We were told that there was a woman
18:39who practiced voodoo
18:41in a storefront
18:42and these gang members
18:44would go to her
18:45to ask for her blessing
18:46and protection from law enforcement.
18:49We had to find a way
18:51to stop Eric Hunter.
18:57You go to that 43 unit.
18:58And I didn't hear any of that.
19:00A partner of mine and myself,
19:03we drove around to see
19:04if we could locate
19:05any local gang members
19:07we could talk to
19:08to kind of give us some insight
19:10into some of the crimes
19:11that were occurring.
19:14We observed what we believe
19:16to be a hand-to-hand
19:16narcotics transaction
19:17take place with a vehicle.
19:19So we decided to stop that vehicle.
19:23There's a small turn lane
19:24right up here by this light.
19:26And that's where we conducted
19:27the traffic stop.
19:31On approach to the car,
19:33my partner took the driver's side window
19:35and I took the right rear passenger side.
19:39At that point,
19:40we asked for compliance.
19:42Show me your hands,
19:43put your hands on the dashboard.
19:45We just want to see their hands
19:46to make sure
19:46they're not going to hurt us.
19:48The front passenger
19:50and the driver
19:50immediately complied.
19:53The person in the back
19:55behind the driver
19:56was not complying.
19:57It was just kind of pretending
19:59he couldn't be seen.
20:02I continued to address him.
20:03I said,
20:03show me your hands,
20:04show me your hands.
20:05He still didn't comply.
20:07I heard my partner ask
20:08for a driver's license registration
20:10just like any other car stop.
20:12And I heard the driver say,
20:14you know me,
20:15I'm Eric Hunter.
20:16I don't have my ID.
20:17And at that point,
20:19I knew this car stop
20:20was going to get a little hairy.
20:23To say I was nervous
20:26would be an understatement.
20:28I felt that this male passenger
20:30in the backseat
20:31had a gun in his lap
20:32and I felt that he was
20:34getting ready to kill me.
20:36I am so convinced
20:37that this subject has a gun
20:39and that we're about
20:40to get in the shooting
20:40that I point my gun at him
20:42and I begin telling him
20:44that if he doesn't show me his hands,
20:45I'm going to kill him.
20:47He still does not comply.
20:48I can see the muscles
20:50in his hands moving.
20:51I can see the muscles
20:53in his forearms twitching.
20:54I feel like he's maneuvering
20:56the weapon to a position
20:57where he can shoot me.
20:59At the same time,
21:01I am also positioning myself
21:02to where I can get
21:03a clean shot on him
21:04that I start squeezing my trigger
21:07and I let him know
21:08one more time
21:09to look at my weapon,
21:11to look at my finger,
21:12to see that I'm squeezing
21:13the trigger
21:14and to know that
21:15I'm about to shoot him.
21:22I thought I was going
21:23to get shot.
21:25I took my body armor
21:27and I pushed it
21:28into the window
21:30so his only shot
21:31was going to be
21:31on my body armor.
21:33At that time,
21:34our backup started arriving.
21:36We had multiple
21:37police cars showing up.
21:40He showed me his hands
21:41but I could tell
21:42he kind of did
21:43a sleight of hand.
21:44Whatever he was holding
21:45in his hands,
21:45he moved and kept
21:46under the hat.
21:47I said,
21:48get this guy out of the car
21:49and handcuff him.
21:52I was able
21:53to search the car.
21:55First thing that I went
21:56to look for
21:56was to confirm my feeling
21:58and I lifted the hat
22:00off the rear passenger seat
22:04and I saw a .380
22:05black Beretta handgun.
22:08They say when something's
22:09about to happen
22:10in police work,
22:11the hair stands up
22:11on your neck and stuff
22:12and I knew I was
22:13very close to
22:14getting into shooting
22:15that night,
22:16possibly being shot.
22:19Eric Hunter
22:20was arrested that night
22:21for possession
22:22of a firearm
22:22by a convicted felon.
22:24Eventually,
22:24we identified
22:25the male in the back
22:27of the vehicle
22:27as Derek Slade.
22:30Derek Slade
22:30was convicted
22:31of a homicide
22:32when I believed
22:32he was 14 or 15 years old.
22:34His nickname was Soldier
22:37and he was known
22:38to be extremely violent.
22:40Being face-to-face
22:41with a cold-blooded killer,
22:43I was definitely lucky
22:44to get out of there
22:45but I was also elated
22:47because I thought
22:47this could be the gun
22:48that could break
22:49this case wide open.
22:51Once I got the firearm,
22:53I was able to send that
22:55along with the casings
22:56from each crime scene
22:57to the FBI lab.
22:59They were able
23:00to link it
23:01to the Corey Billings
23:02Attempts at Homicide,
23:03the A.J. Bossfield
23:05Homicide,
23:06as well as
23:07many different
23:08drive-by shootings
23:08that had happened
23:09all over South Florida.
23:10So this was
23:11a huge breakthrough.
23:22Once we had
23:22Eric Hunter
23:23and Derek Slade
23:24locked up,
23:25while you want
23:26to have a sense
23:26of elation
23:27that they're off the street
23:28and you feel like
23:29you've accomplished
23:29your goal,
23:30this is really
23:31the beginning
23:31of the case.
23:33Eric Hunter
23:34is in jail
23:34but he has connections
23:35outside of jail.
23:38The other gang members
23:39were still targeting
23:41victims on his orders
23:43and if we didn't
23:45do something,
23:46he was going to get
23:46time served
23:47and just walk
23:48out of jail.
23:49I sat down
23:50and explained
23:51to my boss,
23:51I'm not only going
23:52to put these guys
23:53in jail
23:53for a few months,
23:55these guys are going
23:55to go to jail
23:55for the rest
23:56of their lives.
23:59To take them down,
24:00we had to prove
24:01that they were
24:01an organized crime group.
24:03We have to show
24:04that they worked together,
24:05that they shared
24:06the proceeds
24:07of their crimes
24:08and worked in unison
24:09to commit these crimes
24:11and that's all part
24:12of a RICO case.
24:16RICO was originally
24:18designed to be used
24:18against the mafia.
24:20The first time ever,
24:21the reputed heads
24:22of all five crime families
24:23in our town were hauled
24:25into court
24:25on one indictment.
24:27The RICO statue
24:28allows you to present
24:30in court evidence
24:31of a bunch
24:32of different crimes.
24:33It is literally
24:33an organized crime statute
24:35but it's hard to do,
24:36it's rarely done.
24:38I was working
24:39with Paul Shorts
24:40and Jeff Kaplan
24:40who are legends.
24:42Usually we're the ones
24:43asking the questions.
24:45They're known
24:45for doing big RICO cases.
24:48They are known
24:49for being aggressive
24:50and not stopping
24:51until they get
24:51their guys in jail.
24:53In order to build
24:54the RICO case
24:54you need to explain
24:56this group.
24:57In this particular case
24:59we really couldn't do it
25:00by just circumstantial evidence.
25:02Extremely difficult scenario,
25:04no cooperators,
25:05no undercover agents,
25:07no victims, nothing.
25:09We were concerned
25:10that Special Agent Box
25:12was somewhat inexperienced.
25:15but as time progressed,
25:18Jessica Box
25:19found a way
25:20to get things done.
25:23I spent upwards
25:25of a year
25:26going through
25:27social media
25:28and cell phones.
25:29Thousands,
25:29if not more,
25:31images
25:31and messages
25:32back and forth.
25:33I needed information
25:35to show that they
25:36worked together,
25:37that they were
25:37an organization.
25:39When I found
25:40a new piece
25:40to the puzzle,
25:41I would get so excited.
25:44Jessica showed me
25:45social media posts
25:46from these gang members
25:47ended with the word
25:48on-site.
25:50And the derivation
25:51of that is that
25:52they will kill you
25:53on-site.
25:54And so,
25:55any piece of information
25:56where they use
25:57the word on-site,
25:58I was able to take that
26:00and show that they are
26:01part of the on-site gang.
26:03We had a list
26:04of over 100
26:05main subjects
26:06that we're concerned
26:07about were
26:08part of this
26:08violent group.
26:11So,
26:12we had significant
26:13information
26:13to explain
26:14the existence
26:15of this gang,
26:16but nothing
26:17significant enough
26:18to place them
26:19in prison
26:19for any length
26:20of time.
26:23As time went on,
26:24I was under pressure
26:25to finish the case,
26:27but we ran
26:29into roadblock
26:29after roadblock.
26:33I was very frustrating
26:34as a mother.
26:36At that time,
26:37there was no closure
26:38for me
26:40because I didn't know
26:41where we were going
26:43with this case.
26:47The people
26:48that killed my son,
26:49I want them
26:50to be accountable.
26:52There's a reason
26:52we have laws.
26:53Laws are supposed
26:54to protect the innocent,
26:56not protect the guilty.
27:05At this time,
27:06we still hadn't
27:07built the RICO case
27:08and we didn't have
27:08enough evidence
27:09to hold Hunter
27:10any longer.
27:12He drove around
27:13the community
27:13very boldly.
27:16He was willing
27:18to kill anyone
27:19that wanted
27:19to work against him.
27:23One night,
27:25we went to church,
27:26we were coming home,
27:27and we were making
27:29a left onto our street
27:32and a car came
27:33next to us
27:37and I looked
27:37at my husband
27:38and I looked
27:39at the car.
27:41He was going
27:43same speed.
27:45It was like
27:46right next to us
27:47and he just looked
27:48at me and I looked
27:49at him.
27:55And then he
27:56went away.
27:59And I remember
28:00writing down
28:00the tag number
28:01and calling
28:02the detectives.
28:04I got a phone call
28:05back later on
28:06that night
28:06telling me,
28:07Kathy,
28:09this is one of the guys
28:10that's involved
28:11with this case.
28:14It just,
28:14it sent chills.
28:16It sent chills.
28:20Kathy Wilson
28:21had a legitimate
28:22reason to be concerned
28:23because Eric Hunter
28:25is very dangerous.
28:26Some people
28:27literally packed
28:28their entire family
28:29up and moved
28:30out of Florida
28:31because they were
28:32mentioned on a Facebook
28:33post by Eric Hunter.
28:35They were shooting
28:36up people's homes.
28:37I was scared
28:38for my family.
28:47Eddie,
28:48he died November
28:494th of 2015.
28:52Every year,
28:53I go out
28:54to the garage
28:54where it happened.
28:56I light a candle.
28:58I play some
28:58of the songs
28:59that we used
28:59to listen to
29:00every day
29:00and I sit out
29:01there for a few
29:02hours,
29:04pay my respects,
29:06and to just
29:08give thanks
29:09and honor
29:09to Eddie
29:10for being
29:11such a real person
29:12and a good friend.
29:15Two years
29:17passed.
29:18In regards
29:19to the police
29:20department,
29:21I was like,
29:22they'll never
29:22figure it out
29:23because anything
29:24that's going on
29:25in the ghetto,
29:28they don't really
29:30care.
29:31It's how we're
29:32raised,
29:32it's what we're
29:32taught,
29:33and it's what
29:33we know.
29:34So I kind of,
29:35I gave up on them.
29:39By this point,
29:40we were running
29:40out of options.
29:42I was told that
29:43to keep the case
29:44alive,
29:44we need someone
29:45on the inside.
29:47We need somebody
29:48to explain to us
29:49their organization.
29:50You need somebody
29:51to talk.
29:54Anyone that knew
29:55these gang members,
29:56I'd always ask them,
29:57who do you think
29:58would be the first
29:59to talk to me?
30:00Without a doubt,
30:01everyone named
30:01Marcello Gordon.
30:03Marcello Gordon
30:04was a lifelong
30:05criminal,
30:05mostly violent crimes.
30:08Jessica Box
30:08had her laptop
30:09and showed him
30:10all the evidence
30:11that we had.
30:12You could tell
30:12that he was
30:13seriously thinking
30:14about it.
30:15We spoke to his
30:16mother.
30:17We explained
30:18just how much
30:18trouble he's in
30:19and how he's
30:20looking at the
30:20rest of his life
30:21in jail.
30:22And still,
30:23he refused.
30:24It was devastating.
30:28Just a couple
30:29days later,
30:30we were listening
30:31to Marcello Gordon
30:32and Derek Slade
30:32jail calls.
30:34We would monitor
30:35calls that were
30:35taking place
30:36between our suspects
30:37and people
30:38on the outside.
30:39The on-site gang
30:40were trying to find
30:41information on
30:42special agent Box.
30:45It was clear
30:46that Eric Hunter
30:46and the on-site gang
30:47had my name.
30:50Is he looking
30:51for my address?
30:52Is he looking
30:52to come get me
30:53and do a drive-by shooting?
30:56I was really fearful
30:58of what might happen.
31:06One day,
31:07I get this phone call.
31:09This is Jessica Box
31:11with the FBI.
31:12And I was like,
31:12FBI?
31:13How you get my number?
31:14Why you got my number?
31:15And what's going on?
31:16What did I do?
31:18When we first
31:19started the investigation,
31:20I was told,
31:21don't bother talking
31:22to Veronica Gilchrist.
31:24They said,
31:25she's anti-law enforcement.
31:26She won't work with you.
31:27She won't help you.
31:29In the Donald Johnston homicide,
31:31we still didn't know
31:33who the shooters were.
31:35So I finally decided,
31:36let's go talk to her.
31:37What's the worst
31:38that could happen?
31:40When I pull up,
31:41I'm literally looking
31:43for this big
31:45six-foot Harley-David
31:47Davidson riding lady
31:48with probably a buzz cut
31:50or a mohawk.
31:51And I got this
31:52little bitty lady,
31:54120 pounds,
31:55soaking wet.
31:56And she looked like
31:57she makes the best
31:58gingerbread men.
32:01I remember the day
32:02so clearly.
32:03She walked in
32:04polite,
32:06kind,
32:07and then tearful.
32:08She told her story.
32:12I presented pictures
32:14of the main
32:15subjects of the case.
32:18We came
32:19to Eric Hunter.
32:22I was like,
32:23he looked familiar.
32:25And I sat there
32:26and I thought about it
32:27long and hard.
32:30I remember
32:31he actually came
32:33to the garage
32:34to buy weed
32:35at least three
32:37separate times.
32:39It didn't dawn on me
32:40that, like,
32:41he's in your
32:43case in the place.
32:45Agent Box asked me,
32:46did I want to testify?
32:49Eric Hunter
32:50and the Onsite gang
32:51had a long track record
32:52of intimidating witnesses.
32:54He did multiple
32:54drive-by shootings
32:55on people that he thought
32:56would testify against him.
32:59Veronica knew
33:00this was very dangerous.
33:03If that's what
33:04I could do
33:04to pay Eddie back,
33:06I was ready.
33:08Sit me on the stand.
33:09Give me the Bible.
33:10I'm going to bring my own.
33:11I wouldn't have put them away
33:13for the rest of their life
33:15and the afterlife.
33:16So,
33:17yeah.
33:21She
33:21was just so brave
33:24and I was so
33:26inspired by her.
33:27And I think it's
33:28a lesson all of us
33:29need to have
33:30is you always
33:31get back up
33:32even when you're
33:32shot down.
33:36So I went back
33:37and looked at
33:38the Donald Johnston
33:39homicide.
33:41Inside the garage,
33:42we found multiple
33:43AK-47 cartridge casings.
33:46But outside,
33:47we found a single
33:489mm casing.
33:50While all of the shooting
33:51was happening
33:52in the garage,
33:53one gunman
33:53was standing outside.
33:55I realized
33:56that this was actually
33:57very similar
33:58to the Corey Billings
33:59attempted homicide
34:00where Eric Hunter
34:01was standing in the doorway
34:03and 9mm cartridge
34:05casings were found.
34:07So I started looking back
34:09through any photos
34:10of Eric Hunter
34:10taken around that time.
34:12As I dug deeper,
34:14I found a picture
34:14on Derek Slade's
34:16social media.
34:18Eric Hunter
34:18is holding two liquor bottles
34:20and appears to be celebrating.
34:22This photo was posted
34:24just mere hours
34:25after the Corey Billings
34:26attempted homicide.
34:28Then I go on
34:29to Derek Slade's
34:31cell phone
34:31and look through
34:32the photos
34:33from that same night.
34:35And lo and behold,
34:36I find a very similar image
34:37of Eric Hunter
34:38holding the two liquor bottles.
34:40But one major thing
34:42is different.
34:43There was the 9mm gun
34:44lying right next to him.
34:47Of course,
34:48Derek Slade
34:48was smart enough
34:49not to post the image
34:50of the gun,
34:51but the pictures
34:51are almost identical.
34:52You can actually see
34:53from the timestamps
34:54that they were taken
34:55just minutes apart.
34:57It was heart-wrenching
34:58to know
34:59that they could
35:00attempt to kill somebody
35:02and later on
35:04not only celebrate
35:05but post it
35:06to social media
35:07in a bragging way.
35:11That picture
35:12was a key piece
35:13of information
35:14to show us
35:14that that gun
35:15was in fact
35:16with them that night.
35:18But we had to develop
35:19evidence as to
35:20who actually fired
35:21those shots.
35:23Because the clarity
35:24of the video
35:25was not very good,
35:27we sent it to a movie
35:28production company
35:29who tried to enhance it.
35:36It was much clearer
35:38if we could identify
35:39one of the individuals
35:41depicted in there,
35:42it would certainly
35:43increase the pressure
35:43on them
35:44to cooperate
35:44and give us
35:45the structure
35:46of the gang.
35:49The first suspect
35:50that came in
35:51and shot at the dog
35:53got a clean shot
35:54of his face
35:55right under a light.
35:58he had a very
35:59identifiable
36:00cross tattoo
36:01on his forehead
36:03and I knew
36:04right then
36:04it was
36:04Marcello Gordon.
36:16Unless
36:16Marcello Gordon
36:17cooperated,
36:18I knew that
36:20we would never
36:20get a RICO case,
36:21I knew that
36:22the rest of the guys
36:23would walk out of jail
36:24and commit murder
36:25again.
36:27We went over
36:28to the jail
36:29and we showed him
36:30the videotape
36:30and we explained
36:32to him that we thought
36:33it was overwhelming
36:34evidence and that
36:35just that alone
36:36is going to give him
36:37a life sentence.
36:38He teared up,
36:40he was very emotional
36:41about watching it
36:42and still refused
36:43to talk to us.
36:45I looked him
36:46in the eye
36:46I said
36:47this case
36:48is my life.
36:50I sleep
36:51and think about it
36:52I dream about it
36:53I wake up
36:55and I work it
36:56all the way
36:57till 10 or 11 o'clock
36:58at night
36:58this is all that I do
37:00this is how dedicated
37:01I am
37:01this is
37:02I will not stop
37:02until you're in jail
37:03for the rest of your life.
37:07Marcello Gordon
37:08lifted his t-shirt
37:09to show us
37:10he had a large tattoo
37:11on his body
37:13that said on site
37:15this was the moment
37:16Marcello Gordon
37:17decided to cooperate.
37:20He opened up to us
37:21and began to reveal
37:23the missing pieces
37:24of the puzzle.
37:25He was able to show
37:26how Eric Hunter
37:27would give them guns
37:28or tell them
37:29who to rob.
37:31Hunter was the leader
37:32Derek Slade and I
37:33were the enforcers
37:34we had other individuals
37:36who would help us out
37:37he described
37:38who those individuals were
37:39and they would share
37:41the loot.
37:42He told us
37:43the on-site gang
37:44was responsible
37:45for the murder
37:46of Donald Johnston
37:47A.J. Bosfield
37:49the attempted murder
37:50of Corey Billings
37:51and Zoe Gotti.
37:53It's almost like
37:54you have this kind
37:55of iceberg
37:56and all of a sudden
37:57it starts breaking
37:58to pieces
37:59and it just makes it easier
38:00to get the next person
38:01and say hey
38:02Marcello Gordon's cooperating
38:04you're in trouble.
38:07It's ironic
38:08how a gang
38:09that built
38:10their entire reputation
38:11on targeting victims
38:13that they didn't think
38:14would work
38:14with law enforcement
38:15ultimately flipped
38:17and decided
38:18to not only
38:19talk to law enforcement
38:21but also get on the stand
38:22and testify
38:23against one of their own.
38:24Part of a vicious gang
38:25responsible from everything
38:27to home invasions
38:28to murders.
38:29That's how the feds
38:30describe these men
38:31who are now facing
38:32federal charges tonight.
38:34NBC6 report.
38:34You look at them
38:35and
38:38they could be
38:38anybody's
38:39son
38:41anybody's brother
38:44it's not until
38:47they open their mouth
38:48and they start speaking
38:50and they talk about
38:52everything they've done
38:54I don't hate
38:57but I do recognize
38:58hatred
38:58and I do recognize evil.
39:02Marcello Gordon
39:02told us
39:03at the Donald Johnston
39:04homicide
39:05when they
39:07approached the garage
39:08Hunter was outside
39:10and that
39:11they started opening
39:12up the garage
39:14Slade was just
39:15shooting
39:16and Slade was the one
39:17who shot
39:19Donald Johnston.
39:22I want
39:23who did this
39:24to my son
39:24to pay for it.
39:29Veronica stood up
39:30in court
39:30each time
39:31and faced
39:32the people
39:33that literally
39:34gunned her down
39:36and I cannot imagine
39:37how scary
39:38that must be
39:39their families
39:40were sitting
39:41in court
39:41behind them
39:42and I'm sure
39:43she was worried
39:43about retaliation
39:44but she stood there
39:46and let the court
39:48and the judge
39:49know exactly
39:49what she went through.
39:51I spoke my piece
39:52and I wish
39:53them no luck
39:54in hell.
39:57Gordon was sentenced
39:58to 34 years.
40:00Derek Slade
40:01was sentenced
40:02to two life terms
40:03plus 30 years.
40:05In Eric Hunter's case
40:06he got 39 years.
40:11If it wasn't
40:12for a special agent box
40:14I don't know
40:15that we'd be sitting
40:15here today
40:16when this case
40:17looked like it would
40:18stall and we had nothing.
40:19She had that tenacity
40:21and that drive
40:22to continue
40:23to work this case
40:24year after year
40:26after year
40:27to bring
40:28so much closure
40:29to a lot of victims
40:32and justice
40:33for their families.
40:36It's been so long!
40:39You've made my job
40:41worth it.
40:43Any moment
40:44when I am
40:45questioning
40:46or I'm tired
40:47or I don't want
40:48to keep going
40:48or I don't want
40:49another case
40:50I think of you.
40:51I have a different
40:52outlook at
40:53you know
40:54dealing with
40:54law enforcement now.
40:55I know it was
40:56sleepless nights.
40:57I know times
40:58where you probably
40:59did just want
40:59to give up
41:00but you never
41:00gave up on
41:02I feel like
41:02you didn't give up
41:03on me.
41:04Now I can sleep
41:05peacefully at night
41:06and I just
41:07thank you for that.
41:08You know
41:08you my hero girl.
41:11Yeah.
41:12Yeah.
41:16Next time
41:17on FEDS.
41:19He called
41:20himself
41:20the next
41:21John Wick.
41:23I just screamed
41:24to the top
41:24of my legs.
41:25I'm scared
41:26to do it.
41:27He's a real
41:29life
41:29murder for money
41:31hitman.
41:32No words
41:33can explain
41:34that feeling.
Comments