CLEVELAND, Ohio — Federal prosecutors say that suspects in a series of 2015 carjackings in Cleveland’s Tremont neighborhood planned to use one of the cars in a planned attack on members of a subset of the Heartless Felons gang, according to a court filing.
The revelation put in an order filed Friday afternoon is the first time prosecutors have outlined a motive for any of the five robberies and carjackings that left many in the burgeoning neighborhood on edge. Two of the defendants are set to go to trial next month.
Five suspects were charged in federal court in the carjackings. Three defendants, Tervon’tae Taylor, D’wan Dillard Jr. and Calvin Rembert have pleaded guilty, while defendants Kenneth Jackson Jr. and Antowine Palmer maintain their innocence.
Prosecutors say the defendants are members of Heartless Felons Broadway subset and had an ongoing feud with another sect called Heartless Felons Fleet. They say the feud resulted in a series of shootings, including shootings that injured both Jackson and Palmer.
They asked U.S. District Judge Patricia Gaughan to allow Rembert to testify to his relationships with Jackson and Palmer and their positions in Heartless Felons Broadway, their roles in the carjackings and why they carried out the robberies.
“The Government notes that Palmer stated to law enforcement that no victim can identify him. It posits that this is because Palmer ordered others to commit the carjackings for him. Thus, Palmer’s position in (Heartless Felons) Broadway and his ability to order other members of the gang, including Jackson, to commit the carjackings is a central issue in the case,” Gaughan wrote.
Rembert is also expected to testify that Jackson and Palmer wanted to use a stolen car to attack members of Heartless Felons Fleet on July 25, 2015, the same day as one of the carjackings, the order says. The judge will also allow Rembert to speak on that.
Prosecutors also asked Gaughan to allow Cleveland police gang expert Det. Al Johnson to testify to the violence between the Broadway and Fleet susbsets of the Heartless Felons.
Gaughan wrote that Johnson cannot testify, saying prosecutors did not prove a strong connection to the violence between the two gang subsets.
“Because the minimal probative value of Detective Johnson’s proposed testimony is substantially outweighed by the danger of unfair prejudice to the Defendants, it may not be introduced at trial,” Gaughan wrote.
Palmer pleaded guilty in June to his role in one of those retaliatory shootings. He was involved in a Aug. 12, 2015 drive-by shooting that injured Brad Bradford, another Heartless Felons member and was sentenced to seven years in prison.
Kevin Cafferkey, Jackson’s attorney, did not immediately have a comment.
Jaime Serrat, Palmer’s attorney, said in a statement that he agrees with Gaughan’s ruling.
“Mr. Palmer is anxiously awaiting his day in court,” Serrat said in his statement.
The FBI said it tied the defendants to the carjackings through interviews with suspects, fingerprints, and surveillance footage. The trial is set to begin March 14.
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