Alleged leaders of Gangster Disciples indicted on racketeering charges
EAST ST. LOUIS, Ill. – The U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, Steven D. Weinhoeft, announced today that seven alleged members of the violent Gangster Disciples gang, including top national and state leaders, have been charged in a federal indictment accusing them of a years-long interstate racketeering conspiracy involving multiple murders, drug trafficking, and other crimes. Certain defendants were also charged with murder, attempted murder, and various firearms crimes.
The federal indictment was unsealed today in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Illinois.
According to the indictment, the Gangster Disciples is a violent street and prison gang founded in the 1960’s that has engaged in large-scale drug trafficking and violence throughout the United States. The gang employs a structured hierarchy, with leadership positions such as national “Board Members” and state “Governors.” Each of the defendants is alleged to be a member or leader of the Gangster Disciples and to have conspired to conduct the gang’s affairs through a pattern of racketeering.
Frank Smith, 47, of Naperville, Illinois, an alleged national “Board Member,” is charged with Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organization (RICO) conspiracy, murder in aid of racketeering, attempted murder in aid of racketeering, and related firearms crimes.
Warren Griffin, 51, of Lancaster, Kentucky, an alleged national “Board Member,” is charged with RICO conspiracy, murder in aid of racketeering, and related firearms crimes.
Anthony Dobbins, 53, of Troy, Illinois, an alleged national “Board Member,” is charged with RICO conspiracy, murder in aid of racketeering, and related firearms crimes.
Sean Clemon, 50, of Cape Girardeau, Missouri, the alleged “Governor” of the state of Missouri, is charged with RICO conspiracy, murder in aid of racketeering, attempted murder in aid of racketeering, and related firearms crimes.
Dominque Maxwell, 28, of Cape Girardeau, the alleged “Assistant Governor” of the state of Missouri, is charged with RICO conspiracy, murder in aid of racketeering, attempted murder in aid of racketeering, and related firearms crimes.
Perry Harris, 29, of Cape Girardeau, an alleged “Treasurer” and “Chief of Security” for the state of Missouri, is charged with RICO conspiracy, murder in aid of racketeering, attempted murder in aid of racketeering, and related firearms crimes.
Barry Boyce, 44, of Charleston, Missouri, an alleged member of the gang, is charged with RICO conspiracy.
Among the crimes alleged in the indictment are two gang-related murders. On April 28, 2018, Clemon, Maxwell and Harris, on orders from Smith, allegedly killed Leroy Allen as part of a leadership dispute at a Gangster Disciples meeting in Bridgeton, Missouri. On May 18, 2018, Griffin and Dobbins are accused of killing Ernest Wilson, a rival member in Chicago.
Other acts of violence alleged as part of the conspiracy include a nightclub stabbing in East St. Louis, Illinois, a nonfatal shooting in Cape Girardeau, and multiple unsuccessful murder plots. The indictment also alleges various acts of drug trafficking by Gangster Disciples members, including an ongoing scheme to smuggle the synthetic drug “K2” into Missouri state prisons.
The charges and allegations in the indictment are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. If convicted of the racketeering conspiracy charged in Count 1, each defendant could receive as much as life in prison and a $250,000 fine. Murder in aid of racketeering is a death-eligible offense.
The Drug Enforcement Administration Cape Girardeau Resident Office investigated this case with the ATF, FBI, Federal Bureau of Prisons, IRS – Criminal Investigation, Missouri Department of Corrections, Illinois State Police, the Major Case Squad of Greater St. Louis, Bridgeton Police Department, Cape Girardeau Police Department, and Chicago Police Department.
