NEW YORK – A Brooklyn man accused of overseeing the Mad Stone Bloods, a violent street and prison gang, was arrested last week on charges of racketeering and interstate drug trafficking, according to newly unsealed court records.
FBI agents arrested William Seeley, also known as "Papa Don," on Nov. 1, about a week after a grand jury in Norfolk, Virginia, indicted Seeley and seven other Mad Stone Bloods members in a sprawling drug conspiracy.
Court papers filed in Manhattan described Seeley as the "global chairman" of the gang, a "senior decision-maker" who signed off on acts of retaliatory violence against rival gangs and directed the recruitment and promotion of members in several states.
Seeley's defense attorney did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Seeley is scheduled to appear Friday in U.S. District Court in Manhattan.
Prosecutors described the Mad Stone Bloods as a historical rival of the notorious Crips of Los Angeles, as well as the MS-13, a brutal street gang also known as La Mara Salvatrucha. Mad Stone Bloods members wear red and black and routinely use the letter "K'' in place of "C'' as a sign of contempt for the Crips.
From New York, Seeley allegedly presided over a sophisticated hierarchy that stretched from Texas to Connecticut and gang ranks that included "godfathers" and generals. Prosecutors say gang members around the country reported to Seeley and relied on him to authorize violence against rival gangs.
The gang trafficked heroin, cocaine and methamphetamine on the streets but also has sought to maintain influence in Virginia prisons by smuggling in cellphones and other contraband, according to the 27-count indictment.
Also charged in the indictment is Willie Burroughs, who was arrested last month on charges he served as a "godfather" of the Mad Stone Bloods in New York City. His defense attorney, Sabrina Shroff, said in an email that Burroughs is anxiously awaiting his transfer to Virginia and intends to fight the charges.
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