Two Bronx gang members were sentenced Tuesday in federal court in Brooklyn after prosecutors said they spent more than a year carrying out armed carjackings that targeted Long Island motorists and other New Yorkers. Abdoul Azika, 21, and Jaquell Blackwell, 21, received federal prison terms after admitting to multiple gun- and knife-point thefts, according to authorities.
Sentences Handed Down
Azika was sentenced to 87 months in prison and Blackwell to 63 months for their roles in the carjacking spree, according to a post from the U.S. Attorney’s Office on X. In a separate press release via the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York, prosecutors identified both men as members of the Bronx-based "5zzly" crew of the Blood Hounds Brims and listed the E.D.N.Y. docket numbers tied to the cases.
Spree Across Long Island
Court filings and local reporting state the crimes ran from June 2022 into 2023 and included several violent encounters on Long Island. According to Patch, one March 19, 2023, attack in Garden City involved the defendants opening the doors of a parked car, pointing a knife and a gun at the driver, and ordering him out. Prosecutors say other admitted incidents include carjackings in South Farmingdale, Massapequa, and Elmont, where victims were forced from their vehicles at gunpoint.
Prosecutors' Statement
“For more than a year, the defendants and their co-conspirators engaged in a pattern of armed carjackings targeting hardworking New Yorkers,” U.S. Attorney Joseph Nocella Jr. said in a press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office. The announcement also thanked Nassau County police and Garden City police for their assistance and credited the FBI’s Safe Streets task force with providing investigative support.
Sentences and Next Steps
Both defendants had earlier pleaded guilty to federal carjacking charges and, according to prior coverage summarizing the plea hearings, faced up to 15 years in prison if convicted. Federal Newswire, which reviewed government filings and the guilty pleas, notes that the prosecution is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Rebecca M. Schuman and Kamil R. Ammari of EDNY’s General Crimes Section.
Prosecutors said the sentences are intended to deter gang crews involved in violent thefts and to offer some measure of closure to victims across Nassau County. Local authorities added that investigations will continue to determine whether additional members of the crew remain at large.
