NORFOLK, Va. – A Suffolk man who is part of a local street gang was sentenced Thursday to nearly six years in prison for being a felon in possession of a firearm after an April 2019 shootout involving members of a rival gang.
Court documents say 25-year-old Tamarrea Deyon Walker is a member of the Suffolk-based criminal street gang “YNGI.” In April 2019, Walker and a fellow gang member brandished firearms and shot at two rival gang members, who fled to their vehicle and drove away.
Walker and four other YNGI members piled into their own car and chased after the rival gang members. The two groups shot at each other while the cars were moving. The driver of Walker’s car was shot in the chest with a rifle, which caused him to slam on the gas, speed through an intersection, and crash head-on into another vehicle.
Police officers arrived at the scene soon after and saw Walker rummaging around the vehicle and an extended 9mm magazine lying on the ground by his feet. Records say the officers also recovered from the wreckage more than 30 grams of heroin and four firearms, including a Masterpiece Arms 9mm handgun.
A photo of Walker holding the Masterpiece Arms handgun, loaded with that same extended magazine, was posted on his Instagram account just days earlier.
“This case serves as a stark reminder of the violence and fear caused by criminal street gangs in our communities,” said Thomas E. Bennett, Chief of Suffolk Police. “This conviction is also a reminder of the effectiveness of hard work and relentless investigation and teamwork between federal, state, and local law enforcement.”
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), which is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. The case is also part of Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws.
