CBL/BFL Member Pleads Guilty For His Role In Racketeering Conspiracy

BUFFALO, N.Y. - U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. announced today that Dajon Nettles, a/k/a Gucc, 25, of Buffalo, NY, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Lawrence J. Vilardo to racketeering conspiracy. The charge carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison, and a $250,000 fine.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul C. Parisi, who is handling the case, stated that between 2010 and August 28, 2018, the defendant was an associate with the CBL/BFL Gang, which stands for, among other things, “Cash Been Long” and “Brothers for Life.” He conspired with several other associates to sell drugs, commit robbery, retaliate against witnesses, and commit assault. CBL/BFL operated within a specifically defined geographic area on the East side of Buffalo. Gang members and associates engaged in drug trafficking to generate income and violent crimes to maintain control over their territory. As part of his plea, defendant Nettles admitted to participating in the following acts:

• On June 4, 2013, in the Towne Gardens neighborhood, the defendant shot approximately three times at a vehicle containing members of a suspected rival gang causing damage to the vehicle;

• On June 8, 2013, Nettles provided a revolver to a co-conspirator and member of the CBL/BFL enterprise. On that date, the co-conspirator was engaged in a dispute with another individual at 418 South Park Avenue in Buffalo, and during the dispute, the co-conspirator pointed the revolver at an individual’s head and pulled the trigger. The firearm did not discharge. The co-conspirator was stopped by Buffalo Police later that day, and the police recovered a .32 caliber revolver loaded with five rounds of ammunition;

• On September 21, 2015, the defendant appeared in a video on social media holding a rifle while a co-defendant held ammunition. Nettles’ possession of firearms as depicted on video, and other firearms he maintained access to as a member of the enterprise, occurred during times when the defendant and others were involved selling crack cocaine and other drugs as members of the enterprise;

• On August 7, 2017, Nettles sold crack cocaine to an individual working with investigators;

• On August 29, 2018, the defendant was on Spring Street and Mary B. Talbert Boulevard when he was stopped by members of the FBI and the Buffalo Police Department who had a federal warrant for his arrest. Nettles had one bag of crack cocaine in his underwear and a scale with cocaine residue in his pants pocket; and

• On two occasions between 2014 and 2017, defendant sold crack cocaine to an individual working with investigators.

A total of 13 CBL/BFL members and associates have been charged in this case. Nettles is the fourth to be convicted. The fact that a defendant has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation, and the defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.

The plea is the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Gary Loeffert; the Buffalo Police Department, under the direction of Commissioner Byron Lockwood; the New York State Police, under the direction of Major Edward Kennedy; the Erie County Sheriff’s Department, under the direction of Sheriff Timothy Howard; the Cheektowaga Police Department, under the direction of Chief David Zack; Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Kevin Kelly; the Drug Enforcement Administration, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Ray Donovan, New York Field Division; the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge John B. Devito, New York Field Division; the Lackawanna Police Department, under the direction of Chief James Michel; the U.S. Marshals Service, under the direction of Marshal Charles Salina; and the Erie Crime Analysis Center. Additional assistance was provided by the Erie County District Attorney’s Office, under the direction of District Attorney John Flynn.

Sentencing is scheduled for January 24, 2020, before Judge Vilardo.