10th Street Gang Member Sentenced to 30 Years in Prison

BUFFALO, NY—U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that Michael Corchado-Jamieson, 20, of Buffalo, New York, who was convicted on October 21, 2011 of two counts of murder in aid of racketeering in connection with the April 17, 2006 shooting deaths of Darinell Young and Brandon MacDonald, and two counts of attempted murder in aid of racketeering in connection with shootings on April 26, 2006 and June 4, 2008, was sentenced yesterday to a term of 30 years in prison by U.S. District Judge Richard J. Arcara.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph M. Tripi, who handled the case, stated that the defendant had been a member of the 10th Street Gang when he participated in theses shootings.

As part of the 10th Street Gang’s war with rival gangs on the West Side of Buffalo, on or about April 17, 2006, the defendant, along with numerous other 10th Street gang member accomplices, retaliated against individuals they suspected to be rival gang members. In the process, Darinell Young and Brandon MacDonald, who were not rival gang members but were merely at the wrong place at the wrong time, were shot to death.

In preparation for the April 17, 2006 murders, the defendant and other 10th Street gang members obtained various firearms, and were driven to a location on Buffalo’s lower West Side where the defendant and others believed that rival 7th Street gang members were located. The defendant and other 10th Street Gang members and associates met, and were armed with several guns. The defendant and other 10th Street Gang members fired numerous shots at a group of individuals they believed to be rival gang members who were outside of a residence on Pennsylvania Street, Buffalo, New York. Dozens of shots were fired from the various firearms possessed by the defendant and the other 10th Street gang members who participated in the shooting. Victims Brandon MacDonald and Darinell Young were shot and killed as a result of injuries sustained during the shooting. Additional victims, identified as “P.D.,” “M.A.,” and “A.W.,” suffered gunshot wounds but survived the shooting. Thereafter, the defendant and the other 10th Street gang members and associates fled the scene. The defendant and his accomplices hid their firearms inside the trunk of a vehicle, which was waiting with a getaway driver in a nearby alley.

On April 26, 2006, approximately one week after the murders of Darinell Young and Brandon MacDonald, the defendant and other 10th Street gang members and associates observed individuals they believed to be 7th Street gang members, who were seated inside a vehicle on Maryland Avenue. In an attempt to kill 7th Street members “A.C.” and “N.O.,” the defendant and his accomplice fired several shots from a handgun and a shotgun into the car. The shots fired by the defendant struck the vehicle in which “A.C.” and “N.O.” were traveling.

Then, on June 4, 2008, J.G., a 7th Street gang member, went to 10th Street park to play basketball. While there, the victim got into a dispute with 10th Street gang members, who included the defendant. The victim and the defendant both pulled out guns and began shooting. During the shootout, the defendant and another 10th Street gang member fired multiple shots at the victim, who was shot in the arm and fled the scene. Victim J.G. sustained serious bodily injury as a result of the shooting.

U.S. Attorney Hochul stated, “This case demonstrates the continued effort by our office to ferret out crime and bring to justice all who engage in violence.”

The conviction was the culmination of an investigation on the part of special agents of the FBI Safe Streets Task Force, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Christopher M. Piehota; New York State Police, under the direction of Major Christopher Cummings; the Buffalo Police Department, under the direction of Commissioner Daniel Derenda; and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, under the direction of Frank Christiano.