18 arrested in Brooklyn gang sweep, charged in conspiracy linked to multiple murders, shootings
BROOKLYN, New York -- New York police are taking down some young gang members in Brooklyn and some of them are barely teenagers.
There's no shortage of surveillance video of the shootings that cops say involved mostly innocent bystanders.
Nearly 20 gang members were busted for all kinds of charges, including murder.
Gang warfare is on full display in video shown by Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez.
"Some of them were as young as 16, 15, 14," he said.
Gonzalez said the reality of the situation is, once you take down the shooters, you are able to cut down on the shootings.
To that end, the district attorney highlighted the results of a nearly three-year investigation.
Eighteen alleged gang members charged in three indictments with murder, weapons possession and other charges.
Detectives connected the defendants to 10 shootings that injured 10 people.
Eight of those shooting victims were innocent bystanders.
Video shows a car driving down a Brooklyn street and slowing for a speedbump when the vehicle began taking on gunfire.
The shooters thought they were rival gang members.
"These subjects woke up everyday with one objective: terrorizing opposing gangs," said NYPD Deputy Inspector Craig Edelman.
Members of the Brooklyn community have expressed concern about the growing number of violent shootings.
"There's a lot of killing over here. The brothers are killing each other and that's got to stop. It's got stop," said a Bed-Stuy resident.
Police launched their investigation in the summer of 2021.
That's when a pair of gangs in a battle over territory committed multiple shootings, including three in a span of two hours.
A 16-year-old boy was killed and three other people were hurt, including an innocent victim, mistaken for a gang rival.
Investigators say the suspects often incriminated themselves by boasting and posting about their crimes on social media.
"Individuals right now are posting as much as they can. They are very brazen with their posts. And if that's the case, we are ready to capitalize on it," said NYPD Chief Jason Savino.
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