January 22, 2010
Media Contact: Jenn Meale
Phone: (850) 245-0150
Three Tampa Area Gang Members Convicted
TALLAHASSEE, FL – Attorney General Bill McCollum today announced that three Plant City gang members were convicted of conspiracy to commit racketeering. West Side members Sylvester Dunson Jr., Christopher Davis and Nathaniel George each face up to 30 years when they are sentenced in February. The gang members were prosecuted by the Attorney General’s Office of Statewide Prosecution.
Dunson, 19; Davis, 21; and George, 22 were part of the West Side gang, a Plant City gang that traffics heavily in narcotics and is known for committing robberies. Other charges include battery, grand theft auto, resisting arrest with violence and assault. The three men and seven co-defendants were arrested in 2008 after an investigation conducted by the Plant City Police Department and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement with assistance from the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office and the Tampa Police Department.
The three men are the first defendants from the gang to go to trial; three other gang members have pleaded guilty and have been sentenced to various prison terms ranging from five to 10 years. Four additional members are in custody awaiting trial. The case was tried before the Honorable Anthony Black of the 13th Judicial Circuit.