Virginia Gang Member Sentenced to 22 Years for Murder Plot Following HSI Norfolk Investigation

NORFOLK, Va. — An investigation conducted by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Norfolk, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives’ Washington field division, the Franklin Police Department, and the Southampton County Sheriff’s Office resulted in a 22-year, nine-month prison sentence for a Virginia gang member for his involvement in a plot to murder a gang rival.

Malik Trevonte Newsome, 31, of Ivor, received the sentence April 23 at the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia in Norfolk.

Newsome was the final defendant sentenced for a violent crime spree committed by members and associates of a Blood-affiliated criminal enterprise that operated in and around Franklin.

“Mailk Newsome and his co-conspirators embarked on a violent crime spree that not only endangered the residents Franklin, but also furthered a culture of violence that is infecting Eastern Virginia,” said HSI Washington, D.C. Special Agent in Charge Derek W. Gordon. “We cannot allow such violent criminal enterprises to turn our streets into war zones. HSI Washington, D.C. will continue to work aggressively with our federal, state and local law enforcement partners to dismantle such criminal networks.”

According to the HSI investigation, Newsome and his co-conspirators — Ronald Damone Jenkins Jr.,42, of Franklin; Japree Lortez Brooks, 40, of Murfreesboro, North Carolina; Montrail Je’Quan Manley, 28, of Portsmouth; and Deon Dominick Sykes, 35, of Franklin — participated in three shootings between late 2017 and early 2019. When a rival Crip-affiliated gang murdered a member of the Blood-affiliated gang, the group hunted down and shot members and associates of the Crip-affiliated gang. One of the victims was shot in the hand and leg, and two other victims sustained gunshots to their torsos, leaving each with colostomy bags and permanent injuries.

A federal jury convicted Newsome, Jenkins and Brooks on Dec. 11, 2023. Newsome was convicted of conspiracy to commit murder in aid of racketeering, witness tampering and obstruction of an official proceeding.

Jenkins was convicted of conspiracy to commit murder in aid of racketeering, attempted murder in aid of racketeering, and being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition. On April 16, 2024, Jenkins was sentenced to 25 years in prison.

Brooks was convicted of conspiracy to commit murder in aid of racketeering, attempted murder in aid of racketeering, carrying and discharging a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence, and witness tampering and obstruction of an official proceeding. On April 18, 2024, Brooks was sentenced to 35 years in prison, plus an additional year for a violation of conditions of supervised release in a separate matter.

Manley pleaded guilty on June 6, 2023, to conspiracy to commit murder in aid of racketeering and being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition. On Jan. 4, 2024, he was sentenced to 12 years in prison.

Sykes pleaded guilty on July 27, 2023, to conspiracy to commit murder in aid of racketeering. On Jan. 4, 2024, he was sentenced to 10 years in prison.

This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces operation. Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces identify, disrupt and dismantle the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multiagency approach.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia and the Justice Department’s Criminal Division prosecuted the case.

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