United States Drug Enforcement Administration

TRENTON, N.J. -  Valerie A. Nickerson, Special Agent in Charge for the Drug Enforcement Administration’s New Jersey Division, and Gurbir S. Grewal, Attorney General for the State of New Jersey, announced that seven members of a major gun trafficking ring in Camden have been indicted on first-degree racketeering charges.

The indictment was obtained by the Division of Criminal Justice in a joint investigation by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration Camden HIDTA Task Force, New Jersey State Police, Camden County Metro Police, and U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and (ATF), with assistance from the DEA Philadelphia Division, West Virginia State Police and Henrico (Va.) Police Division.  Four defendants were arrested after the indictment was returned on Tuesday, Feb. 6.

These men are charged with (1st degree), (2nd degree), and transporting firearms into the state for illegal (2nd degree) for allegedly trafficking guns from April 2016 through July 2017:
Leader -

• Chucky Scott, 25, of Columbus, Ohio - , the alleged leader of the ring, also faces first-degree charges of leader of a firearms trafficking network and promoting organized street crime.

Straw Purchaser -

• Anthony Hammond, 26, of Columbus, Ohio - , allegedly acted as a “straw purchaser,” purchasing the guns for Scott in Ohio and delivering some guns to Camden with Scott.

Middlemen -
            The following five men allegedly were “middlemen,” acting as wholesale distributors who arranged sales of the guns in Camden after Scott purchased them in Ohio through Hammond:

• Eduardo Caban, 40, of Camden, N.J. -
• Eric Moore, 47, of Camden, N.J. -
• Tymere Jennings, 35, of Marlton, N.J. -
• Jamar Folk, aka Ibraheem Abdullah, 33, of Camden, N.J. -
• Darren Harville, 51, of Camden, N.J. -

“Dismantling prolific weapons trafficking is the best way to reduce the number of illegal guns being sold to criminals in our communities and used to inflict murder and terror,” said Attorney General Grewal. “Each gun that we seize or prevent from reaching the street represents countless lives saved.  The potential sentences that these men face should also serve as fair warning to those who illegally traffic firearms into New Jersey.”
“All of these men have allegedly played a role in contributing to the violence in Camden,” said Valerie A. Nickerson, Special Agent in Charge of the DEA’s New Jersey Division.  “They showed no concern for the violence which may have resulted from their actions.  The men and women conducting this investigation are dedicated to reducing gun violence in the community.”

The investigation began when the DEA Camden HIDTA Task Force, New Jersey State Police, and the Camden County Metro Police Department developed information that Caban allegedly was trafficking both heroin and guns in Camden.  It is alleged that during the course of the investigation, Caban illegally sold 10 guns that were recovered by the investigating agencies, including two illegal assault rifles with large-capacity magazines, six 9mm pistols, four of which had illegal large-capacity magazines, a .45-caliber pistol and a .40-caliber pistol.  The investigators learned that Caban allegedly was obtaining the guns from Scott. 

The investigation revealed that Hammond and Scott would go together to gun stores in Ohio, where Hammond would buy multiple guns for Scott.  It is alleged that Scott would then take photographs of the guns and text them to his middlemen in Camden, who would find individuals to purchase the guns for prices set by Scott.  Hammond allegedly purchased more than 30 firearms that were trafficked into Camden by Scott and the other defendants.  A total of 17 guns linked to the weapons trafficking ring were recovered in the investigation, including 14 handguns, two AK-47 assault rifles, and an AR-15 assault rifle.

Attorney General Grewal commended the following agencies for their work on the indictment and investigation:

• DEA Camden High Intensity Drug Trafficking (HIDTA) Task Force
• New Jersey Division of Criminal Justice Gangs & Organized Crime Bureau
• New Jersey State Police Trafficking South Unit
• New Jersey State Police Fugitive Unit
• Camden County Metro Police Department
• ATF Columbus, Ohio, Field Division
• ATF Camden, N.J., Field Office
• U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Ohio
• DEA Philadelphia Group 31
• West Virginia State Police
• Henrico (Virginia) Police Division