BRONX DA: SNIFFING OUT THE BLOOD HOUNDS – Gang That Terrorized the 52nd Precinct Charged

More Than a Dozen Gang Members Indicted for

Crimes that Terrorized the 52^nd Precinct

(Bronx, NY – July 21, 2015) — Bronx District Attorney Robert Johnson announces 13 members of a subset of the Bloods gang, the “Blood Hounds,” along with one man known to associate with them, have been indicted for crimes ranging from Conspiracy, Attempted Gang Assault, Attempted Murder, to Criminal Possession of Weapons and Criminal Sale and Possession of Controlled Substances. (See “Defendants and Charges” below)

All but one of the defendants were arrested early this morning following a year-long investigation that uncovered multiple incidents of shootings, illegal weapons possession and drug sales.  When the incidents are alleged to have begun, some of the defendants were just 15 years old. Now, the bulk of those being charged range in age from 17-to-20; they include a father and son, and a set of brothers.

The following defendants were indicted; some were arraigned before Bronx Supreme Court Justice Steven Barrett and pled not guilty to the charges (A = arraigned):

Aaliyah “Smiles”/”Chasity” Floyd, age 20 (A)

Michael “Mike” Maldonado, age 18

Rodney “Nitty” Maldonado, age 35 (A)

Luis “Rast” Manso, age 17

Orlando “Wild Hound” Martinez, age 17

Ezequiel “EZ” Ochoa, age 18 (A)

Percy “Chino” Ochoa, age 19

Joseph “Sleepy”/”Baby” Perez, age 19 (A)

Trevor “Jay Montana” Phillips, age 18 (A)

Jason “Super” Roman, age 30 (A)

Ryan “Ra Balla” Rosario *

Steven “Sikk Hound” Sanchez, age 20

Aaron “Onix” Smith, age 19

(* Rosario, while not a member of the Blood Hounds, is accused of aiding its members in their commission of crimes.)

The others will be arraigned at a later date.

The crimes in the 35-count indictment are:

Conspiracy in the 2^nd Degree (Class B felony)

Conspiracy in the 4^th Degree (Class E felony)

Attempted Murder in the 2^nd Degree (Class B felony)

Criminal Sale of a Controlled Substance in the 3^rd Degree (Class B felony)

Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance in the 3^rd Degree (Class B felony)

Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the 2^nd Degree (Class C felony)

Attempted Gang Assault in the 1^st Degree (Class C felony)

Reckless Endangerment in the 1^st Degree (Class D felony)

It is alleged that the defendants would shoot to intimidate, as well as to kill.  And then, they would boast on Facebook about their exploits.  While most were still teenagers, this subset of the Bloods named the “Blood Hounds” operated in the 52^ndPrecinct for years, using Facebook and other social media to communicate their plans to one another as well as brag about the shootings in the neighborhood, especially around the area of Creston Avenue and 198^th Street.  Facebook chatter during 2013 and 2014 outlined many back-and-forth requests to bring a gun, and often, within minutes after a shooting, a Blood Hound would take credit.

Among the incidents charged in the indictment, at 11:30pm on August 4, 2013, AARON “Onix Hound” SMITH fired shots at Orlando de la Rosa.  Within the hour, LUIS “Rast Hound” MANSO posted a message that Onix Hound had done the shooting.

In another allegation in the indictment, during the early evening of October 30, 2013, members of the Blood Hounds shot and wounded a man named Omar Martinez.  In the wee hours of the next morning, PERCY “Chino Hound” OCHOA posted on Facebook – “Man down.”

During the mid-afternoon of April 4, 2014, AARON “Onix Hound” SMITH is accused of posting a message asking AALIYAH “Chasity” FLOYD to give him a gun.  It is charged that pictures on AALIYAH FLOYD’s Facebook page show her brandishing a weapon, and even posting a message that she’d gotten a gun – for her birthday.

Members of the gang also used Facebook to try to sell firearms, it is alleged.  LUIS “Rast Hound” MANSO posted to Facebook that he had a .25-caliber gun for sale – price $250.  Also on Facebook, but on a different date, according to the indictment, MANSO asked TREVOR “Jay Montana” PHILLIPS if he wanted to “go half” on the purchase of a gun.

The conspiracy for robberies in and around Decatur Avenue and Minerva Place are also charged; one in which MICHAEL MALODNADO, acting in concert with others, conducted an armed robbery and an instance in which PERCY “Chino Hound” OCHOA, acting in concert with one other, forcibly stole a phone.

The gang assault charges stem from a brutal incident inside a bodega at 203 East 198^th Street, during which numerous defendants are charged with accosting a victim inside the store, dragging him to the sidewalk outside where they kicked, stomped and beat him.

Drug sales are also outlined in the indictment, with a number of the defendants charged in sales to undercover NYPD officers.

“Gangs and guns are two of the most serious and troubling problems we are still dealing with in the Bronx,” says Bronx D.A. Robert Johnson.  “Thanks to the efforts of the NYPD, its Gang Intelligence Unit, and particularly in this case, Det. Patrick Nichols and Sgt. Michael Melendez of the NYPD Gang Unit and members of the 52^nd Precinct, and our Gangs/Major Case Bureau, we have made a significant dent in the problem that plagues our residents.

“This office is also working directly in the community, with programs such as CONCEPT, which seeks to reach young people in the schools to equip them with the skills to avoid gangs and prepare for a productive future.”

If convicted of the charges against them, some of the defendants face as many as 25 years in prison.

The case against the 14 defendants is being prosecuted by Gangs/Major Case Bureau Senior Trial Assistant D.A. Leah Takantzas and Counsel to the Gangs/Major Case Bureau Edward Friedenthal, led by Bureau Chief Edward Talty.

The charges in this indictment are merely accusations and the defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty.

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