December 2, 2010
Media Contact: Jenn Meale
Phone: (850) 245-0150
Two Sarasota County Gang Members Receive 15 Years in Prison on Racketeering Charges
TALLAHASSEE, FL - Attorney General Bill McCollum today announced that two Sarasota County gang members were each sentenced yesterday to 15 years in prison after pleading guilty to criminal charges of racketeering and conspiracy to commit racketeering. Torrey Eldridge and Gary Wilder are members of the Second Line criminal street gang that operates in Sarasota County. Eldridge, Wilder, and six co-defendants are being prosecuted for their criminal activities by the Attorney General’s Office of Statewide Prosecution.
According to law enforcement, Eldridge, 20; Wilder, 21; and fellow Second Line members frequently engaged in narcotics distribution, armed robberies and murder. Eight gang members were arrested in September by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, the Sarasota Police Department, and the U.S. Marshalls.
In addition to the 15-year prison sentences, Eldridge and Wilder must also each serve five years of probation upon their release. As part of their probation, they are to have no contact with any gangs or gang members during that time. The sentences were handed down by Sarasota County Circuit Court Judge Rochelle Curley. One of the co-defendants has pleaded guilty to criminal charges of racketeering and conspiracy to commit racketeering and will be sentenced in January. The remaining co-defendants are awaiting trial.