October 8, 2009
Media Contact: Jenn Meale
Phone: (850) 245-0150
Third Shift Gang Member Sentenced to 30 Years in Prison
TALLAHASSEE, FL – Attorney General Bill McCollum today announced a Manatee County gang member was sentenced to 30 years in prison after he pleaded guilty to racketeering and conspiracy to commit racketeering. James King, a member of the Third Shift criminal street gang operating in Manatee County, was also sentenced to five years of probation. King and other members of his gang are being prosecuted by the Attorney General’s Office of Statewide Prosecution under the jurisdiction of the State Attorney’s Office for the 12th Judicial Circuit.
King, 22, and his fellow Third Shift members used their gang to control the drug trade in Manatee County. Other criminal activities tied to the gang include weapons charges and resisting arrest. King, of Bradenton, was arrested in May 2008 by the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office with assistance from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.
Eleven members of the Third Shift gang have been sentenced to prison terms ranging from eight to 60 years. One remaining defendant is in custody awaiting trial.