Source: Office of United States Attorneys
LOS ANGELES – A longtime leader of the South Los Angeles-based Rollin’ 60s Neighborhood Crips street gang – who also is an entertainment entrepreneur and a self-proclaimed community activist – has been charged in a federal complaint alleging he ran a criminal enterprise that committed a series of racketeering crimes, including extortion, human trafficking, fraud, and the 2021 murder of an aspiring rap musician, the Justice Department announced today.
Eugene Henley Jr., 58, a.k.a. “Big U,” of the Hyde Park neighborhood of South Los Angeles, is charged in the complaint with conspiracy to violate the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act.
Two other alleged members of the criminal enterprise – Sylvester Robinson, 59, a.k.a. “Vey,” of Northridge, and Mark Martin, 50, a.k.a. “Bear Claw,” of the Beverlywood area of Los Angeles – were arrested today on the same criminal complaint in which Henley is charged.
Robinson, and Martin are expected to make their initial appearances this afternoon in United States District Court in downtown Los Angeles. Henley is considered a fugitive.
“The allegations in the complaint unsealed today reveal a criminal enterprise that engaged in murder, extortion, human trafficking, and fraud – all led by a supposed anti-gang activist and purported music entrepreneur who was nothing more than a violent street criminal,” said Acting United States Attorney Joseph McNally. “Eliminating gangs and organized crime is the Department of Justice’s top priority. Today’s charges and arrests target the leadership of this criminal outfit and will make the neighborhoods of Los Angeles safer. I am grateful for the work of our prosecutors and law enforcement partners.”
“The lead defendant and others in this case have for too long gotten away with violent acts and stealing money from taxpayers and well-intentioned donors whether they use intimidation tactics or wield influence as rehabilitated original gangsters,” said Akil Davis, the Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office. “The FBI and our partners have worked for four years to bring justice in this case and will continue to rule out this kind of criminal behavior plaguing the streets of Los Angeles.”
In total, law enforcement in the last 24 hours arrested 10 Rollin’ 60s members and associates who are charged with various federal crimes, including drug trafficking, racketeering conspiracy, and firearms offenses. Four defendants already were in custody. Law enforcement is seeking the whereabouts of five other defendants – three of whom are expected to be in custody shortly. Two defendants, including Henley, are considered fugitives.
According to an affidavit filed with the criminal complaint filed Monday and unsealed today, from 2010 to the present, Henley’s criminal group – identified in court documents as the “Big U Enterprise” – operated as a mafia-like organization that utilized Henley’s stature and long-standing association with the Rollin’ 60s and other street gangs to intimidate businesses and individuals in Los Angeles. Henley is widely regarded as a leader within the Rollin’ 60s and rose to prominence in the street gang during the 1980s.
While the Big U Enterprise at times partnered with the Rollin’s 60s and other criminal elements for mutual benefit, the Big U Enterprise is a distinct and independent criminal enterprise engaged in criminal activity including murder, extortion, robbery, trafficking and exploiting sex workers, fraud, and illegal gambling.
For example, in January 2021, Henley murdered a victim – identified in the affidavit as “R.W.” – an aspiring musician signed to Uneek Music, Henley and Martin’s music label. Shortly before R.W.’s murder, Henley and Uneek Music paid for R.W. to travel to Las Vegas to record music at a Grammy Award-winning music producer’s studio.
But R.W. did not record at the agreed-upon rate and instead recorded a defamatory song about Henley, causing Henley and Robinson to travel to Las Vegas to confront him. Henley allegedly drove R.W. to North Las Vegas, shot him in the head, and dragged the victim’s body off Interstate 15 into the desert and left it in a ditch. Henley returned to Los Angeles with Robinson and ordered studio workers to leave while his associate removed security surveillance footage from the studio. Henley allegedly later ordered witnesses to not speak with law enforcement about R.W.’s murder.
Not only did the enterprise expand its power through violence, fear, and intimidation, but it also used social media platforms, documentaries, podcasts, interviews, and Henley’s reputation and status as an “O.G.” (original gangster) to create fame for – and stoke fear of – the Big U Enterprise, its members, and its associates.
In furtherance of the enterprise, Henley allegedly submitted a fraudulent application for a COVID-19 pandemic relief loan in which he claimed that Uneek Music was operating at a $200,000 profit in 2019 despite operating at a $5,000 loss that year, which should have disqualified it from loan eligibility.
The enterprise also enriched itself by defrauding donors to nonprofit entities under the control of the Big U Enterprise, including Henley’s charity, Developing Options, a Hyde Park-based nonprofit. Henley marketed Developing Options as giving South Los Angeles youth alternative choices to gang violence, drugs, and other criminal activity. But the Big U Enterprise allegedly used it as a front for fraudulent purposes and to insulate its members from suspicion by law enforcement.
Henley allegedly embezzled large donations that celebrities and award-winning companies made to Developing Options, which Henley immediately converted to his personal bank account. According to the complaint, Developing Options is primarily funded through the City of Los Angeles’s Mayor’s Office through the Gang Reduction Youth Development (GRYD) Foundation, portions of which receive federal funding, but also receives donations from prominent sources, including NBA players.
“The RICO charges against Mr. Henley and his associates reflect a pattern of crimes that runs the gambit from extortion to tax evasion, all under the umbrella of a well-organized criminal organization led by Mr. Henley,” said Special Agent in Charge Tyler Hatcher, IRS Criminal Investigation, Los Angeles Field Office. “Additionally, Mr. Henley allegedly duped the County of Los Angeles by running a charitable organization that promoted anti-gang solutions while continuing criminal activity that was directly contrary to his charity. IRS-CI is proud to partner with fellow law enforcement organizations to investigate these criminal organizations to protect our communities from further harm.”
“From day one, the Los Angeles Police Department has been proud to stand shoulder to shoulder with the FBI in this critical investigation,” said Los Angeles Police Chief Jim McDonnell. “The invaluable expertise provided by the Operations South Bureau FBI Task Force on the Rollin’ 60’s criminal street gang has played a pivotal role in securing these charges. This is a major step forward in our ongoing fight against gang violence, and it brings hope and relief to a community that has endured far too much. Together, we will continue to protect and serve, working tirelessly to ensure the safety of our neighborhoods.”
Criminal complaints and indictments contain allegations. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
If convicted, Henley would face a statutory maximum sentence of life in federal prison. If convicted, Robinson, and Martin would face a statutory maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison.
The FBI’s Los Angeles Metropolitan Task Force on Violent Gangs; IRS Criminal Investigation; the United States Department of Justice Office of Inspector General; the Los Angeles Police Department; and the North Las Vegas Police Department are investigating this matter.
Assistant United States Attorneys Kevin J. Butler and Jena A. MacCabe of the Violent and Organized Crime Section are prosecuting this case.
MIL Security OSI –