Gangster Killer Bloods member faces 13 to 15 years in state prison

Richard Lamar Jenkins of Trenton, a member of the Gangster Killer Bloods set of the Bloods street gang pleaded guilty Thursday to the 2005 slaying of a Trenton man who was gunned down because he showed disrespect to members of the gang.

Jenkins, 26, pleaded guilty to charges of aggravated manslaughter and conspiracy to commit murder before state Superior Court Judge Edward M. Neafsey in Trenton. Jenkins pleaded guilty to killing Otis Jones, 26, who was shot in the head at Brunswick Avenue and Sanford Street in Trenton on the afternoon of June 20, 2005.

Under a plea agreement, the state will recommend that Jenkins be sentenced to 15 years in state prison, including nearly 13 years of parole ineligibility. Bernard Green, 29, who is also known as Petey Black, the alleged leader in Trenton of the Gangster Killer Bloods or G-Shine set, is also charged with the murder.

Jenkins and Green were charged in a July 15 state grand jury indictment, which superseded an indictment obtained by the Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office in 2006.

“This guilty plea is an important step toward justice for Otis Jones, who fell victim to the wave of senseless gang violence inflicted in Trenton by members of the Gangster Killer Bloods and other Bloods factions in 2005,” state Attorney General Paula T. Dow said. “Working with the Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office, we are continuing our prosecution of Trenton gang members, including alleged leader Bernard Green, who is charged in the killing of Jones and two other murders.”

Jones allegedly was shot because he showed disrespect to gang members while trying to recover a gold necklace of his that had been stolen. In pleading guilty, Jenkins admitted that he conspired with Green to shoot Jones. Jenkins said Green spoke to him twice about shooting Jones, and he agreed to carry out the shooting for Green, who was his commander in the gang.

Jenkins said Green was with him in a car when they found Jones. Jenkins admitted that he shot Jones in the head. Jones had been loading his car to go fishing. Green faces charges of first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit murder and weapons offenses in the killing of Jones.

The state grand jury indictment that charged Green and Jenkins stemmed from “Operation Capital City,” an investigation by the state Division of Criminal Justice, Mercer Prosecutor’s Office, the Trenton police and the State Police.

The indictment also charges Green with two other murders, including the August 2005 murder of Sharee Voorhees, who was caught in gunfire while out on her Trenton porch. It charges a total of 14 Trenton residents, including Green and Jenkins, with first-degree racketeering as alleged members of the Gangster Killer Bloods

The murders and other acts of violence charged in the indictment occurred in 2005, when violence erupted between the Gangster Killer Bloods and two rival Bloods sets, the Nine Trey Gangsters and Sex Money Murder. Green allegedly directed the gang’s activities, including drug trafficking and violence involving assault rifles and semi-automatic handguns, which were used to defend the gang’s turf and settle scores with other gangs.