Five sentenced after home invasion robbery investigation leads to destruction of narcotics racketeering operation

BY JENNIFER CABRERA

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Tremayne Laquael Frazier, 25, David Lee Gordon, Jr., 26, and Montayvious McKinnon, 25, were all sentenced to state prison terms yesterday after a last-minute plea agreement. Keldric Monte Bradley, 26, and Byron Demetrius Jones, 30, were sentenced to shorter state prison terms last Thursday. All five had been scheduled to go on trial yesterday.

On May 29, 2020, Gainesville Police Department (GPD) officers responded to multiple reports of shots fired at the Cabana Beach apartment complex. Witnesses reported that several men ran from a specific apartment, and one witness said the incident was related to an apartment that was known for selling narcotics. GPD officers secured the area and completed a safety sweep of the apartment to make sure nobody was injured. They reported that they saw cannabis, guns, cash, and spent bullet casings in the apartment, along with bullet holes in walls, ceilings, furniture, and neighboring apartments. 

Officers determined that Jones, a resident of the apartment, had opened the door and was confronted by a man brandishing a firearm. Jones grabbed a gun, a struggle ensued, a weapon discharged, and the two fell to the floor. A second man entered the apartment with a gun, followed by a third man. Frazier picked up a gun and fired several rounds at the three robbers, who fled on foot. 

A witness also told officers that he saw a man run out of the apartment and put something in a Dodge Charger that was rented by McKinnon. A GPD detective reported that he could see cash, a digital scale, and a large container of what appeared to be cannabis in the car in plain view.

The apartment complex verified that McKinnon, Frazier, Jones, and Bradley were the tenants on the apartment lease.

Based on the significant amount of marijuana seen during the safety sweep, a narcotics investigation began, and detectives arrived. The residents of the apartment only consented to a search of the common areas but did not give consent to a search of the bedrooms. Because that would limit their ability to gather evidence, GPD sought and obtained a search warrant for the whole apartment.

The search warrant found over $32,000 of cash, cocaine, cannabis, THC edibles, two handguns, ammunition, cannabis cigars, cannabis wax, THC syrup, Butane Honey Oil, an M&P15 rifle, and an AR-15 rifle. A search of McKinnon’s car found glass jars of “molly,” THC cartridges, a bag of marijuana, THC cartridges, and digital scales.  

While conducting the search, officers saw messages coming in to McKinnon’s Snapchat account, asking to buy “flavors,” “wax,” “a zip,” “carts,” and “indoor.” The detective noted that these messages are indicative of narcotics sales. 

The Gainesville Police Drug Task Force investigation led to a new apartment at Rocky Pointe Apartments, where Bradley, Frazier, Gordon, and McKinnon continued to sell narcotics and were also accused of laundering money through their company Smash Brothers Ent. LLC and their music group SHOOO GANG.

A search warrant executed in September 2020 at that apartment found a large amount of narcotics and cash in every room of the apartment, along with two guns. They found large amounts of cannabis, cannabis cigars, cannabis cartridges, cannabis wax, pre-packaged cannabis kief blunts, THC resin cartridges, and packaged cannabis edibles. 

The five men were scheduled to go on trial yesterday, but they decided to enter pleas instead of going to trial.

Bradley entered a plea of nolo contendere last Thursday to possession of a controlled substance with intent to sell and was sentenced to 30 months in state prison, followed by five years of probation. Charges of racketeering, a felony, and keeping a structure for the purpose of dealing dangerous drugs, a life felony, were dropped, along with five other felonies and three misdemeanors.

Frazier was initially charged with 15 felonies, including dealing dangerous drugs, a life felony, and three misdemeanors. He entered a guilty plea to racketeering and tampering with physical evidence and was sentenced to seven years in state prison, followed by five years of probation.

Gordon entered a plea of nolo contendere to one count of maintaining a structure for the purpose of trafficking, selling, or manufacturing drugs, one count of conspiracy to sell a controlled substance, one count of possession with intent to sell a controlled substance, and one count of unlawful use of a two-way communication device. A count of racketeering was dropped. He was sentenced to 5 years in state prison, followed by 5 years of probation. 

Jones entered a plea of nolo contendere last Thursday to maintaining a structure for the purpose of trafficking, selling, or manufacturing drugs and possession with intent to sell a controlled substance and was sentenced to 30 months in state prison, followed by five years of probation. Three felonies and two misdemeanors were dropped in the plea agreement, including a racketeering charge and a charge of displaying a firearm during a felony.

McKinnon was initially charged with 13 felonies, including the life felony of dealing dangerous drugs, and three misdemeanors. He entered a guilty plea to racketeering and trafficking in synthetic cannabinoids (which has a mandatory minimum sentence of three years) and was sentenced to ten years in state prison, followed by five years of probation.