Seventeen Indicted In Racketeering/Murder Investigation

Press release from the City of Alexandria:

Jun 23, 2021 at 2:50 PM

Seventeen Indicted in Racketeering/Murder Investigation

For Immediate Release: June 23, 2021

The Alexandria Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office announced that
seventeen people have been directly indicted by a Grand Jury and arrested on
charges related to a conspiracy to commit racketeering in the City of Alexandria,
Virginia. The charges relate to a complex drug trafficking organization that was
allegedly responsible for the sale of large amounts of marijuana in Northern
Virginia, Washington, D.C., and Maryland.

Additionally, it is alleged that on November 7, 2020, a member of the
organization murdered Yousef Omar in the 4800 block of West Braddock Road in
Alexandria. It is alleged that the murder was committed in furtherance of the
drug trafficking organization.

During the investigation of this matter, the following items were seized
in multiple jurisdictions:

At least 23 firearms including three assault rifles and multiple high
capacity magazines;

• At least $274,795 in U.S. currency;
• More than 150 pounds of high-grade marijuana, worth an estimated
  $500,000 in value;
• Cocaine and other controlled substances;
• Electronic money counting machines, digital scales, vacuum sealers,
  packaging materials, suitcases, and owe sheets;
• Multiple fictitious identification cards and driver’s licenses;
• Multiple vehicles used in furtherance of the organization’s racketeering
  activity.

The case involved coordinated law enforcement operations in a number
of different jurisdictions, to include Virginia, Washington, D.C., Maryland,
Washington state, and California. The Vice/Narcotics Unit of the Alexandria
Police Department was the lead investigative agency and was assisted by a
number of law enforcement agencies who played a substantive and important
role in the case. These partner agencies include:

• Arlington County Police Department
• Virginia State Police
• Homeland Security Investigations
• Metropolitan Police Department
• Montgomery County Police Department
• Prince George’s County Police Department
• Azusa, California Police Department
• United States Marshals Service
• Metropolitan Washington Airport Authority Police
• Drug Enforcement Administration
• Valley Narcotics Enforcement Team
• Fairfax County Police Department
• National Insurance Crime Bureau
• Prince William County Police Department
• Port of Seattle Police Department
• Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office
• Los Angeles Border Enforcement Security Task Force
• United States Postal Inspection Service
• Los Angeles Police Department
• Washington/Baltimore HIDTA
• Office of the Commonwealth’s Attorney for the City of Alexandria

Commonwealth's Attorney Bryan Porter said: "I want to thank the
Alexandria Police Department’s Vice/Narcotics Section and the multitude of
partner law enforcement agencies for their diligent and professional work on this
investigation. Firearms and violence follow racketeering organizations as the
number of weapons seized and the alleged murder charge illustrate. Illegal
money, no matter how it is obtained, begets the potential for robbery, assault,
and homicide.

“The collaborative effort between the partner law enforcement agencies
shows true professionalism and determination to halt the cycle of violence
inherent in complex drug trafficking organizations. The cooperation between
agencies exhibited in this case provides a new paradigm for complex, multistate
investigations.”

Ahmed Mohammed Shareef, a 23-year-old resident of Cosa Mesta,
California, was indicted by the Grand Jury on three counts: First-Degree Murder,
Use of a Firearm in the Commission of Murder, and Conspiracy to Commit
Racketeering. Shareef is in custody in California awaiting extradition to
Alexandria.

The First-Degree Murder charge carries a maximum penalty of life in the
penitentiary. The Use of a Firearm charge carries a maximum penalty of 3 years
in the penitentiary. The Racketeering charge carries a maximum penalty of 40
years in the penitentiary and a fine of not more than $1 million.

An additional sixteen defendants have been arrested on charges of
Conspiracy to Commit Racketeering. No trial dates have been set in the matter.

The Office of the Commonwealth's Attorney notes that all charged persons
are presumed to be innocent and the Commonwealth bears the burden of
proving all charged offenses beyond a reasonable doubt by presenting
admissible evidence in a court of law. The mere fact that a person has been
indicted is not evidence that they are guilty of any criminal offense.

Rule 3.6 of the Virginia State Bar's Rules of Professional Conduct for
Attorneys states, in pertinent part: "A lawyer participating in or associated with
the… prosecution … of a criminal matter that may be tried to a jury shall not
make or participate in making an extrajudicial statement… that the lawyer knows,
or should know, will have a substantial likelihood of interfering with the fairness of
a trial by jury." Therefore, the Commonwealth is prohibited from discussing the
evidence, its trial strategy, or its work product prior to disposition of these
matters.

This press release was produced by the City of Alexandria.The views expressed here are the author’s own.