By: Yuritza Arroyo
Federal authorities announced that a member of a neighborhood street gang in Hudson County admitted to stabbing a rival gang member during a retaliatory gang-related assault.
According to federal officials, Sheldon Mays, aka “Thottie,” 23, of Jersey City, pleaded guilty in Newark federal court to an information charging him with one count of assault with a dangerous weapon – a knife – in aid of racketeering.
Officials say on Aug. 3, 2020, Mays and seven others, all of whom are associated with a street gang operating in and around the Curries Woods Public Housing Complex in Jersey City – identified as “Curries Woods” or the “Tay Tay Shrimp Gang” or the “Sharks” – assaulted a rival gang member in retaliation for a prior gang-related assault.
As the victim was walking down a street in Jersey City, Mays and the others approached in two cars, parked in the middle of the street, and violently assaulted the victim, who was punched, kicked, and stabbed by Mays and suffered life-threatening injuries.
According to officials, the count of assault with a dangerous weapon in aid of racketeering activity is punishable by a maximum of 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.
Sentencing is scheduled for September.
This investigation was conducted as part of the Jersey City Violent Crime Initiative (VCI).