Gang member named in investigation has already pleaded guilty and agreed to stay out of Grove Hall and Uphams Corner

One of the 17 people charged in connection with a crackdown on two Dorchester gangs was actually arrested last November, pleaded guilty to federal drug charges in February and was sentenced in May to 30 months in federal prison and three years of supervised release, during which he agreed to stay out of Grove Hall and Uphams Corner.

Takari "Paper" Elliott, 25, an alleged member of the Cameron Street Killas who has been arrested before, was nabbed during a yearlong investigation by Boston Police and the federal ATF into its feud with the Wendover Street gang, for an incident in which he twice sold crack to an informant wired for sound on Howe Street in July of last year.

In an affidavit, an ATF agent involved in the investigation, described the second sale, which took place around 3:25 p.m. on July 8 after Elliott drove up in a white Infiniti belonging to Maria Barbosa, his alleged ex-girlfriend who was charged yesterday with distributing cocaine and distributing fentanyl.

Elliott parked near Hancock Street and one of the two "cooperating witnesses," who had driven in a car supplied by investigators, walked up, got in, and gave Elliott $200 in BPD "buy" money in exchange for two grams of crack.

CW-2 entered the front passenger door at approximately 3:25 p.m. and immediately wanted to know why Elliott was charging CW-2 $200 today. In response, Elliott told the CW that "the dude" (presumably Elliott's supplier) "chrged more for the work yesterday," but assured CW-2 that the price would not go higher than $200 and would be between $175 and $200. Elliott also said that he would give CW-2 a better deal if he/she bought 2 eight balls of crack instead, telling him/her, "No bullshit, the more the better, you be help me out." ...

As CW-2 got out of the white Infiniti, she/he asked Elliott "what happened over there" (apparently referencing a recent nearby shooting scene). Elliott responded by telling CW-2 "Someone got killed ... it's summertime, you know." CW-2 then remarked on the number of guns on the street and asked Elliott if he could get CW- one. CW-2 explained that he/she wanted a .22 caliber handgun and would be willing to pay $400 for it. Elliott said, "If I find one, I'll let you know." CW then walked back down Howe Street, met back up with CW-1 and together they drove back to meet with me and the other investigators.

In a memo to the judge in the case, Indira Talwani, Assistant US Attorney John Wortman wrote that barring Elliott from the two neighborhoods where he'd had most of his interactions with police would help him build a more productive life:

Because both the literature and common sense show that opportunities for crime will be presented whenever a Defendant returns to a high crime area in which his offending began and grew (and in which his street credentials and sense of self may have been based on that very criminality), removing him from that area can reduce both the opportunities for further crime and the expectation from those around him that he will re-offend.

Wortman added that, in any case, Elliott now plans to move out of the Boston area altogether once he is released from prison.

Elliott's lawyer, Timothy Watkins, wrote Talwani that he would normally oppose any geographical restrictions, but not in this case:

[T]he narrowly tailored geographical exclusion zone and the specific associational prohibitions promote Elliott's already demonstrated desire to put his past behind him, and to physically and mentally remove himself from the milieu that has culminated in dangerous chaos. It is testimony to Elliott's resolve that he has agreed to join in the exclusion and prohibition conditions proffered by the government.

Affidavit by ATF agent (1.2M PDF).
Government explanation for sentence (43k PDF).
Response by Elliott's attorney (52k PDF).