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Dempsey Collins and David Gilliens charged as gang's leaders

Thirteen people, including two alleged leaders and other members of a drug trafficking ring that distributed narcotics in a violent Jersey City neighborhood were indicted Thursday.

The drug ring, which included some members of the Sex Money Murder set of the Bloods street gang, sold PCP, heroin and marijuana in the violence-plagued Greenville section of Jersey City.

The 40-count state grand jury indictment charges Dempsey Collins, also known as “Da” or “Demps,” 30, of Jersey City, and David Gilliens, also known as “Good Dude” or “GD,” 29, of Jersey City, with the crime of leader of a narcotics trafficking network, a first-degree offense that carries a sentence of life in prison, including 25 years without the possibility of parole.

Collins allegedly had authority over the criminal enterprise, dictating the prices at which narcotics were sold, where and when drugs were sold, who sold what quantities, and how profits were divided. Gilliens allegedly had more hands-on leadership of the daily operations of the criminal enterprise.

Kwadir Felton, 19, of Jersey City, faces weapons charges in connection with an armed confrontation with Sgt. Thomas McVicar of the Jersey City police, which occurred on Jan. 10, 2010 while the officer was conducting surveillance for the investigation.

McVicar shot and wounded Felton in the head, after Felton allegedly crouched down by the officer’s unmarked car, chambered a round in a 9 mm handgun, and pointed the gun at McVicar.

The indictments stems from “Operation Wetlands,” an investigation by the State Police, the Jersey City police, the state Division of Criminal Justice, the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office and U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.

“This is an outstanding example of an investigation that joined all levels of law enforcement – state, local, county and federal – to target a drug network with ties to the Bloods street gang,” state Attorney General Paula T. Dow said. “In these times of shrinking budgets, this type of cooperative investigation can leverage our law enforcement resources to have a major impact on crime.”

“This was a targeted investigation to take down a criminal network that brought drugs and guns into a violent section of Jersey City,” state Criminal Justice Director Stephen J. Taylor said. “We are working to protect residents and improve their quality of life by taking these criminal elements off of the street.”

The 13 people, nine men and four women are charged in the indictment with second-degree conspiracy to distribute narcotics and launder money. Second-degree crimes carry a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison. The indictment charges six people with various drug offenses. Five are charged with first-degree offenses. They are Collins, Gilliens, Ashmire “Mimi” Jones, 26, of Jersey City, Thomas Johnson, 22, of Jersey City, and Narrell Lytch, 31, of East Orange. The first-degree drug charges carry a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.

Felton and Rasheed Boney, 20, of Jersey City, each face second-degree weapons charges. Felton is also charged with aggravated assault for allegedly pointing the loaded gun at McVicar. Seven other defendants who served as street-level dealers previously pleaded guilty in the case, and two juveniles were adjudicated delinquent in family court. Collins and Gilliens are charged with the second-degree crime of employing a juvenile in a drug distribution scheme.

As a result of arrests made during the investigation and search warrants that were executed, evidence was seized including approximately 32 ounces of PCP, 35 bricks of heroin, a small amount of marijuana and oxycodone, two handguns, and approximately $32,000 in cash. Detectives arrested all of the people named in the indictment on or before Feb. 18, 2010.

The following people are charged in the indictment:

Alleged Leaders

• Dempsey Collins, 30, of Jersey City
• David Gilliens, 29, of Jersey City

Alleged Street-Level Supervisors

• Vanquan Rush, 26, of Jersey City
• Thomas Johnson, 22, of Jersey City
• Jermaine Mitchell, 29, of Jersey City
• Rasheen Rice, 31, Jersey City

Alleged Street-Level Sellers

• Ashmire Jones, 26, of Jersey City
• Kwadir Felton, 19, of Jersey City
• Narrell Lytch, 31, of East Orange
• Rasheed Boney, 20, of Jersey City
• Kanisha Mallard, 30, of Jersey City
• Kim Jones, 44, of Jersey City

Allegedly Laundered Money

• Delilah Collins, 26, of Jersey City. She is Dempsey Collins’ sister.

The law enforcement partners for Operation Wetlands were part of the Violent Enterprise Source Targeting program, begun by the DEA to dismantle criminal organizations in New Jersey. Undercover troopers and officers made drug buys and conducted extensive surveillance to discern the scope, membership and hierarchy of this drug trafficking network.

Deputy Attorney General Erin Callahan presented the case to the state grand jury. The investigation was led by Det. Sgt. Thomas Ryan and Det. Rebecca Velez of the State Police Street Gang North Unit, and Sgt. Steven Trowbridge and Officer Anthony Goodman of the Jersey City police.

– TOM HESTER SR., NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM