A 13-count indictment was unsealed today in United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York charging eight members and associates of the Zheng Organization with crimes including racketeering, narcotics trafficking, extortion offenses, illegal gambling, and soliciting assaults. The defendants are scheduled to be arraigned this afternoon before United States Magistrate Judge Robert M. Levy at the federal courthouse in Brooklyn.

The charges were announced by Robert L. Capers, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York; Diego Rodriguez, Assistant Director-in-Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office (FBI), William J. Bratton, Commissioner, New York City Police Department (NYPD), and Christopher Shanahan, Field Office Director, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO).

“For years, Zheng and his associates committed violent acts to make money, protect their territory, and as retribution for perceived slights. Violent gangs are a blight on our neighborhoods, and we will do all in our power to prevent them from casting a shadow of violence over our streets,” stated United States Attorney Capers. “The arrests and charges announced today are a testament to our commitment to dismantling violent criminal organizations and making our communities safe.” Mr. Capers thanked the Joint Asian Organized Crime Taskforce, which is comprised of members of the FBI, NYPD, and ERO, for their help with the government’s investigation.

“The Zheng Organization used violence and an array of criminal activities to enhance their power and protect their territory. It’s gang related activity like this that infects our communities with an illness that kills our neighborhoods’ safety and growth. However, there is an antidote to this that is made of law enforcement working at both the federal and local level to get gangs like this off the street,” said Assistant Director-in-Charge, Diego Rodriguez.

“These arrests demonstrate our dedication to protecting our communities from the shake downs and intimidation this gang carried out across the city,” said Police Commissioner William J. Bratton. “This case is the latest example of the utility of the task force model in rooting out violence in all of its forms. I applaud the work of the prosecutors from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Eastern District and the FBI agents and NYPD detectives on the Joint Eurasian Organized Crime Task Force for their dedication on this case and the many others.”

The Zheng Organization was based in and around the Sunset Park neighborhood of Brooklyn and the Flushing neighborhood of Queens. As alleged in the indictment and the government’s detention memorandum, the defendants participated in the affairs of the Zheng Organization through a variety of crimes. The charged crimes of violence included extortions and assaults for hire:

In or about August 2013, Qian Zheng hired two individuals to assault victims identified in the indictment as John Doe 3 and Jane Doe. Zheng sought to have one of the victim’s leg broken and the other victim’s face scarred.

In or about October 2013, Billy Chen and Jiang extorted a victim identified in the indictment as John Doe 1. In or about December 2013, Zheng conspired with Chen to further extort John Doe 1. Zheng hired two individuals to carry out the extortion and instructed them to beat John Doe 1 and fire shots into his restaurant so that he would pay an alleged debt.

In or about October 2014, Zheng and Guifu Gao solicited the assault of a victim identified in the indictment as John Doe 4. Gao made clear that John Doe 4 needed to be crippled and that he should be beaten until he was half dead. Zheng similarly instructed those hired to carry out the beating to beat John Doe 4 severely.

On May 28, 2015, Zheng sent his underlings, including Xin Lin, Kai Huan Huang, and Xue Jiang Gao, to collect money from a victim identified in the indictment as John Doe 2 at his gambling parlor. When John Doe 2 insisted that he did not owe any money, Lin, Huang, and Jiang Gao beat him with their fists and wooden stools, breaking a bone in John Doe 2’s hand.

The members and associates of the Zheng Organization also profited by narcotics trafficking and illegal gambling.

If convicted of the charges in the indictment, Zheng faces a maximum sentence of 164 years’ imprisonment; Hui Chen, Lin, Huang, and Jiang Gao each face a maximum sentence of 40 years’ imprisonment; Billy Chen and Jiang face a maximum sentence of 20 years’ imprisonment; and Gao faces a maximum sentence of 16 years’ imprisonment.

The government’s case is being prosecuted by the office’s Organized Crime and Gangs Section. Assistant United States Attorney Nadia E. Moore is in charge of the prosecution.

The Defendants:

QIAN ZHENG, also known as “Cash” Age: 44

GUIFU GAO, also known as “Chicken Feather” Age: 35

XIN LIN, also known as “Blackie” Age: 33

ALLEN HUI CHEN, also known as “Yi Hui” Age: 43

KAI HUAN HUANG, also known as “Shen Shen” Age: 25

BILLY CHEN, also known as “Lo Di” Age: 42

JIAYO JIANG, also known as “Yi Qiang” Age: 45

XUE JIANG GAO, also known as “Xue Zhang” Age: 30