Towson & Nathan Barksdale, 54, the Baltimore drug kingpin who inspired some key characters on HBO's The Wire, died while in a federal medical prison in North Carolina on Saturday . Maurice Peanut King is a former Baltimore Drug Kingpin. Change). Most recently, Mr. Williams operated an indoor flea market on West North Avenue near Smallwood Street. The sentence was announced by Assistant Special Agent in Charge Gary Tuggle of the Drug Enforcement Administration, Baltimore District Office; United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Commissioner Anthony W. Batts of the Baltimore Police Department; Baltimore City States Attorney Gregg L. Bernstein; and Colonel George F. Johnson IV, Superintendent of the Maryland Natural Resources Police. [5], However, in his director's commentary to the first episode of The Wire, Simon says: "We tend to mix the names up but its our kind of back-handed homage to the reality of West Baltimore. Police Commissioner Frank Battaglia boasted that the million dollars spent annually on enforcement was absolutely paying off, as the police department had apprehended forty-one high-ranking suppliers while seizing over a million in cash, a million more in property, ninety-nine automobiles, and 1,110 guns. Blackwell and his conspirators laundered drug money by buying casinos chips, winning lottery tickets, luxury items and real estate. While there were times when Jamaicans and people from New York profited in the streets of Baltimore, the main Baltimore kingpins were with the likes of the old school legends of Peanut King, Little Melvin, followed by the 1980s with T. Stanfield, M. Bates, N. Barksdale (Bodie), the 1990s with Rudy, A. Jones, T.L. Laid off two and a half years earlier from Bethlehem Steel where he earned $24.60 an hour, he turned to delivering $10 heroin packets, living off his cut. A group of about twenty boys banded together as Def City for camaraderie, sports, neighborhood protection, and the typical juvenile delinquency. Schmoke was a drug war critic, but as mayor he instituted Drug Free Zones and Community Policing. Both were arrested. Baltimore native Gary Tuggle began a 30-year career in law enforcement as a city police officer. He also brought in lawyers to talk about the criminal justice system and procedures, Dr. Mr. Simon addressed the question in 2004: "Avon Barksdale? [6], In the 1999 film Liberty Heights, the character Little Melvin portrayed by actor Orlando Jones is loosely based upon Williams in the early stages of his career. "The riots were started by the police when they killed Freddie Gray," Williams told Newsweek via email. His life is the subject of the unreleased docudrama Baltimore Chronicles: Legends of the Unwired, which purports to be the true story behind The Wire. Collins is scheduled to be sentenced on March 6, 2014. Eventually, Pennsylvania Avenue and Edmondson would become the heart of Baltimores black culture as many lived in neighborhoods like Sandtown, the Bottom, and Upton. Melvin Williams, whose life as a West Baltimore drug kingpin in the 1960s and post-prison redemption earned him a recurring role in HBO's "The Wire," died Thursday at the University of Maryland . His current research focuses on a bottom-up examination of the war on drugs. We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to remove those who would commit violence from our community." His name has gone down in infamy in Charm City as one of the baddest, boldest . 2023 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. Canty, and 2000s with G. Smith (Mr Big), the Rice Brothers, and others, all allegedly made millions of dollars during their day. [citation needed], On December 6, 1984, Williams was arrested on cocaine trafficking charges. And they got balls the size of cows! (BALTIMORE) - - U.S. District Judge William D. Quarles, Jr. sentenced Garnett Gilbert Smith, a/k/a Abdule Jones a/k/a Brian Slack, age 44, of Baltimore, Maryland, to 25 years in prison followed by three years of supervised release for conspiring to distribute and possession with intent to distribute cocaine. Im grateful for the hard work of the DEA teams, Maryland Attorney Generals Office, and our law enforcement partners, with whom we were able to execute these arrests and seize illegal drugs and firearms from this violent drug trafficking organization.. One of the Baltimore Police Department investigators working on the case was Ed Burns. His trial was scheduled to begin next week. Fans of "The Wire" have long speculated that Mr. Williams was the inspiration for the drug dealer character Avon Barksdale. However, Nathan Barksdale claimed that Bates was a close friend of his. "There's a piece of Melvin in 'The Wire,'" Mr. Simon said. An undercover narcotics agent noted that neither he nor his targets carried guns, and as for business underlings, you better not get caught carrying a gun if you werent authorized to carry a gun.[3] The national offensive increased the incarceration rate for drug offenses by a factor of ten between 1980 and 1996, and veteran sellers were replaced by inexperienced, trigger-happy youths.[4]. Tarrant County Crimestoppers: 469-TIPS. They would listen to him.". Carney, [5] Karen Warmkessel, 7 in N.Y. BALTIMORE (AP) _ Four men have been accused of civil rights violations in the Labor Day slaying of a federal witness whose grand jury testimony led to charges against one of the men, according to the FBI and city police. Baltimore police officer Edward Burnswho would later become a writer for "The Wire,"was able to conduct a successful investigation against, Williams, however. The Wylie Funeral Home, 701 N. Mount St., is making funeral arrangements. In the early 1980s, King ran a large drug operation in East Baltimore and was a well-known figure, driving a DeLorean sports car and smoking with a bejeweled Zippo. Ordinary activities bike rides, walks, a trip to the store could turn into tragedies. [5], Williams began to appear on the HBO show The Wire during the show's second season. However, he appealed his sentence and it was overturned due to the sentence being outside of the mandatory guidelines. Williams was a notorious drug kingpin in Baltimore who was brought to justice by Ed Burns. The defendants cases will be prosecuted in Baltimore County. Secure .gov websites use HTTPSA lock ( "He told them to take their assets and do something personally and do something for your community.". BALTIMORE An investigation led by a federal drug-trafficking enforcement group led to the indictments of six people in an interstate cocaine trafficking conspiracy, Maryland's attorney. As proponents frequently claim, if they can cut off the head of the snake the body will wither. Mr. Williams suffered personal tragedy. To expect otherwise is pure arrogance, racism and egotism. Mr. Rosenstein thanked Assistant U.S. "I knew of his notoriety and his antics on Pennsylvania Avenue," Mr. Hamm said. The economy leaves us no choice.[6] Many dealers could not have agreed more. He is largely the basis for the Avon Barksdale character in The Wire, and even played a deacon on the show. Alfred Blumstein and Joel Wallman, eds., The Crime Drop in America, Revised Edition (New York: Cambridge University Press, 2006), 4-5. "It was very stressful. He spoke out against drug use and counseled young men to steer clear of the gang culture. [4] Alfred Blumstein and Joel Wallman, The Recent Rise and Fall of American Violence in. 2011 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. Required fields are marked *. At that point, he had served nearly four years on a handgun conviction. When White was arrested on unrelated federal drug charges in July of 2010, Collins replaced White as Smiths supplier of cocaine until October 2011, when Arkansas state troopers stopped a car carrier loaded with $2,306,745 sent by Smith in Baltimore to be delivered to Collins in California. [3] Simon also writes that Barksdale once tortured three people in the Baltimore projects and that his battery conviction was related to the torture incident. Members turned to robbery to secure a heroin supply, often by posing as narcotics agents, leading to the murders of two small-time dealers in front of dozens of witnesses. "As a teen I had heard about him and one day, years later, I mentioned from the pulpit there were people selling drugs on Etting Street. Protests tied to the death of Freddie Gray were more muted on their second night. To anyone who decides to give I would like to thank you in advance. Shipments of the cocaine were typically in quantities of 60 to 80 kilograms each. [4] It is directed by Bruce Brown, and Drew Berry is the writer and producer. They met with Edward Burns, a former homicide detective who had built a successful case against Mr. Williams and was collaborating at the time with Mr. Simon on "The Wire. In his later years, Barksdale worked for the city Health Department in Baltimore, in the Safe Streets program and counseled young people to help them avoid his mistakes. [2], Simon denies that Nathan Barksdale or any other individual is the basis for any specific character in The Wire. It was not done as a gang, a member noted, as distributors instructed them in the Reagan-era ethos of going into business for yourself. The gang progressed from car thefts to owning cars, from fistfights to firefights. 2d ago - https://tony2times.bigcartel.com I'm a Videographer, Photographer, and Reporter located in Atlanta, but I was born and raised in Baltimore. We simply have to do more for ourselves, Mayor Kurt Schmoke noted at his second inauguration. Deb Belt , Patch Staff Posted Thu, Jan 26, 2023 at 6:40 pm ET BALTIMORE, MD In the 1990s, Baltimore's Linwood "Rudy" Williams was charged with trafficking 30 kilos of heroin with a street value of $10 million. Snyde As a result of the ongoing narcotic trafficking, detectives executed search and seizure warrants at multiple stash locations and on vehicles used by the drug trafficking organization, recovering firearms, drugs, and the proceeds from drug sales. He was not a bragger. Watching The Wire gives an example of the streets of the Baltimore ghetto and the once Baltimore kingpins of the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s, but only in a modern-day perspective. Frustrated BPD officials claimed that in the mid-1990s perhaps three out of four murders had a narcotics connection, and prohibitions side effects also contributed to the bedlam. Search warrants were executed at Smiths residences in Maryland and Studio City, California. Change), You are commenting using your Facebook account. Some information might not be current and/or 100% accurate, The Detroit Ghetto: Detroit Kingpins, Detroit Gangs Map, & More, **All Lists Are Currently Being Updated**. "Sometime in my fifties I became aware that there was a God in charge, and not a Melvin," he said. After his release he began working as a community activist to help reform the lives of underprivileged minorities and youth. The kingpins were undoubtedly ruthless, but they also enforced discipline. Leave your comments below be sure to subscribe and hit the notification bell for uploads love Family.#Anthonyjones#BaltimoreTry Cash App using my code and well each get $5! The US has asked Mexico to extradite Ovidio Guzman, son of notorious drug boss Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, to face criminal charges. Frank Matthews was a Black drug kingpin originally from Durham, North Carolina, who operated from the late 1960s to 1973. On Monday, the Baltimore Police Department said it received a "credible threat" that they had unified and aimed to harm law enforcement. U.S. requests extradition of drug kingpin's son, Mexico says Ovidio Guzman has allegedly helped to run his father's infamous Sinaloa cartel since El Chapo was handed over to the U.S. in 2017. Baltimore Sun reporter Frederick N. Rasmussen contributed to this article. *Note: All information is provided through people of the community, outside sources, and research. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Essex, While many liberals have come on board with criminal justice reform, a common refrain is that law enforcers should be focusing on the major traffickers instead of small-time dealers. This is the story of Melvin Williams's rise, fall, and redemption as a Baltimore City heroin kingpin and actor. Williams was born in Baltimore, Maryland. [2] In 1985, Barksdale was sentenced to 15 years in state prison for battery. Domestic Cannabis Suppression / Eradication Program, Red Ribbon Toolkit - Resources For Your Community, DEA National Prescription Drug Take Back Day, Intelligence Research Specialist Job Announcements, Schedule A Hiring Authority: Intelligence Research Specialist, Privacy Impact Assessment and Management Information Systems, Victim Witness Assistance Program Resources. The police have named three groups as primary aggressors: the Crips, the Bloods and the Black Guerrilla Family. [14] Some applauded the actions, but the weary dismissed such efforts as publicity stunts. After a couple of days, it will all be the same again, a 25-year-old sighed. If this claim is anything to go by then, these rappers are in deep sh*t. Richard Byrd says that he partied with top stars while at it with his cross-country marijuana distribution and [] The heroin had a wholesale value of $300,000. Originally the citys black population made their home in a small section of East Baltimore. ), First published on November 23, 2011 / 3:15 PM. In addition to the name and the boxing background, for example, in Easy Money, Simon claims that Marlow Bates and Timmirror Stanfield were rivals of Barksdale's. Unlike the initial peaceful protests following Gray's death, Monday's demonstration turned into a riot. Before the Freddie Gray riots, the locals of Baltimore had legitimate claims of excessive police presence in the community, enforcing petty no loitering laws or city ordinances, affecting the everyday Baltimore citizen. [3] During that time, Williams was a gambler and states that he was framed by Baltimore police for possession of narcotics. He spoke against drug use and trafficking. He took a job earning $4.25 an hour at an Inner Harbor hotel with dreams to Be like Donald Trump.[7], The treacherous stakes weeded out many youths, but there was always someone ready to step up. Drug kingpin says he worked with Kanye, partied with Diddy and used Baltimore attorney's help to hide fortune Justin Fenton, Baltimore Sun 12/11/2021 Arrest, warrants were issued 8 years after 43 . He was not proud of it. 2023 Southern Maryland News & Entertainment. The Mexican drug kingpin Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman has been sentenced to life behind bars in a U.S. prison, a humbling end for a drug lord once notorious for his ability to kill, bribe Williams pointed to a culture of institutional racism as motivation for protests in the city. Williams has devoted time to teaching Baltimore's youth that gang life and drug dealing, while seemingly lucrative and attractive, are not worth it. Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown has indicted six people, including drug kingpins, on multiple charges in connection to an interstate cocaine trafficking conspiracy. The narcotics were then picked up by local distributors Medford Smith, 42 and Sherrod Stokes, 43, of Baltimore before being transported to new locations where they were broken down for street-level distribution across Baltimore County. [3] In The Wire, Marlo Stanfield becomes a major rival of Avon Barksdale's who eventually takes over the Baltimore drug trade. ", Mr. Reid said Mr. Williams was "a man's man who had a serious religious conversion while he was behind prison bars.". "He was one of the most unusual clients because he was so straightforward and honest with me, the courts and police," said Howard L. Cardin, another attorney who represented him. Many owned small businesses and garnered community tolerance through donations, loans, and gifts. No way would I go near that,'" Mr. Cardin said. Known as "Little Melvin" or Slim or Black, for his preference for . "We became acquainted and we talked of his life. 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