A Minneapolis Bloods gang member was sentenced to life in federal prison plus 20 years after being found guilty as part of a racketeer influenced corrupt organization (RICO) and two additional counts of using and carrying a firearm in furtherance of murder, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Lisa Kirkpatrick.
Desean James Solomon, 34, was found guilty last October during a jury trial along with two co-defendants, Michael Allen Burrell and Leontawan Lentez Holt.
The charges against the three were part of a federal crackdown on Minneapolis violent crime that spiraled out of control following Gov. Tim Walz’s pandemic lockdowns and the George Floyd riots.
A press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office reiterated that the targeted gang prosecutions were undertaken about three years ago as “violent crime raged out of control” in Minneapolis.
As previously reported by Alpha News, evidence presented at trial detailed two murders facilitated by Bloods gang members, one in north Minneapolis in 2020, and one in Uptown in 2022:
On June 14, 2020, Solomon, Burrell, and other Bloods members went to the 200 Club, a nightclub in north Minneapolis, where they assaulted a rival gang member in the men’s restroom. Following the assault, a shooting broke out outside the club. Solomon and Burrell both fired their weapons multiple times, resulting in the murder of a rival gang member.
Part of the shootout was captured on video at the time, which showed at least two people firing guns outside the pub.
Last night's shooting in #northMpls, captured on video. At least six shot. https://t.co/fsZdjAoU0J#mpls
— CrimeWatchMpls (@CrimeWatchMpls) June 15, 2020
On April 23, 2022, Solomon, Holt, and other Bloods members went to Williams Pub, a bar in the Uptown neighborhood of south Minneapolis, to celebrate a birthday. Inside the bar, Holt threw an unprovoked punch at a rival gang member and the rest of the Bloods members joined in. A large bar fight ensued. After several minutes, the Bloods members exited the bar onto a nearby street, where Holt and a juvenile member of the Bloods shot at and killed a rival gang member.
Evidence presented at trial proved that Solomon affiliated and associated with the Minneapolis Bloods street gang since at least 2020, the U.S. attorney said. Solomon has been a career criminal throughout his adulthood, committing violent crimes for the benefit of the Bloods gang, which included two premeditated murders within a two-year span. Historically, the gang’s territory is located on the south side of Minneapolis, near Chicago Avenue South and 38th Street East, also known as George Floyd Square.
In imposing the life sentence on Wednesday, Judge Susan R. Nelson explained, “I was searching for a kernel of hope that you could be trusted to not be a danger to society” but that “based on your utter and complete disregard for human life, the brutality of the Bloods gang, your lack of remorse through every stage of this case … I am left with the certainty that you will always be a threat to public safety.” Judge Nelson said, “My hope is this sentence sends a strong message to the Bloods gang and other thriving gangs that ruthlessly terrorize this city.”
Defendants Burrell and Holt are still awaiting sentencing.
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Minnesota Crime Watch & Information publishes news, info and commentary about crime, public safety and livability issues in Minneapolis, the Twin Cities and Greater Minnesota.
Crime Watch MN
Minnesota Crime Watch & Information publishes news, info and commentary about crime, public safety and livability issues in Minneapolis, the Twin Cities and Greater Minnesota.
