Gregory Hamilton, a 29-year-old member of the Minneapolis street gang known as the Highs, has received a life sentence for his role in the murder of an innocent bystander and for RICO conspiracy, as announced by U.S. Attorney Daniel N. Rosen. U.S. District Judge Nancy Brasel delivered the sentence earlier after a three-week trial where Hamilton faced charges for his involvement in gang activities and the killing of Darryl Wells, Jr., who was mistakenly identified as a rival gang member on August 8, 2021, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Hamilton's sentencing marks the second life sentence connected to RICO prosecutions targeting violent gangs in Minneapolis. To date, over 100 alleged gang members have faced federal charges, including 39 individuals associated with the Highs. These charges span RICO conspiracy, narcotics and firearms trafficking, among other offenses. Court documents presented at trial showcased the Highs' operations in territory north of West Broadway Avenue in Minneapolis, engaging in varied criminal acts from murders and assaults to robberies and narcotics distribution, the U.S. Attorney's Office detailed.
The murder of Wells transpired after a Highs member was shot by a rival Lows gang member. The following day, Highs members, including Hamilton, were caught distributing firearms and seeking retaliation during a memorial for their deceased associate. Later, Hamilton, along with Dantrell Johnson and Keon Pruitt, embarked on what has been described as "hunting" for Lows members, resulting in the tragic and erroneous killing of Wells, who was not affiliated with the gangs. Security footage from Skyline Market caught the chilling sequence of events leading to Wells being shot at least eight times, as the U.S. Attorney's Office recounts.
In her ruling, Judge Brasel declared that the murder was "gang revenge, pure and simple." She went on to describe the manner of Wells' death as "horrific and barbaric," noting that the community was also a victim of these acts, reduced to what she termed an "open-air shooting range." Her decision for a life sentence reflected the need to acknowledge and protect community members who were "terrorized" by the Highs' activities, a sentiment echoed by a local in a letter to the Court, "Whether it be from violence with guns, drug sales, a combination of both, we have been preyed upon enough as a community," the U.S. Attorney's Office statement read.
Multiple agencies, including the ATF, FBI, Minneapolis Police, IRS Criminal Investigation, and numerous other local and federal departments, collaborated in the investigation leading to the cases against the Highs. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Thomas Lopez-Calhoun, Albania Concepcion, Rebecca Kline, and Carla Baumel of the District of Minnesota, as well as Trial Attorneys Brian Lynch and Alyssa Levey-Weinstein of the Justice Department's Violent Crime & Racketeering Section, prosecuted these cases, which have seen significant charges laid in the effort to dismantle criminal activities plaguing Minneapolis streets, reported the U.S. Attorney's Office.
