NEW HAVEN, Conn. — A New Haven man pleaded guilty on Thursday to a racketeering offense stemming from his role in a violent New Haven street gang, as was announced by the U.S. Attorney for the District of Connecticut.
Antwan “Bandz” Hill, 21, specifically admitted that he took part in four gang-related shootings, two of which resulted in deaths, as a member of New Haven’s "Exit 8 gang", prosecutors said.
To address violence in New Haven, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tabacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Drug Enforcement Agency, and the New Haven Police Department have worked closely with the U.S. Attorney’s Office and New Haven State’s Attorney’s Office to investigate an ongoing gang war between members and associates of the Exit 8 gang and rival gangs in the Hill section and other areas of the city, according to court documents.
“The Exit 8 gang is named after the geographic area accessed by exiting Interstate 91 at Exit 8 in New Haven. Recently, younger members of Exit 8 are identifying themselves with the word “Honcho,” which is derived from the street name of an Exit 8 member who was murdered on Quinnipiac Avenue in February 2020,” prosecutors said in a release on Thursday.
The joint investigation discovered that Hill, and other members of the Exit 8 gang, participated in drug trafficking, used and shared firearms and, since June 2018, committed at least three murders and attempted 16 murders, according to prosecutors.
Prosecutors also noted that Exit 8 members and associates also stole vehicles, some from outside of Connecticut, and used those stolen vehicles when committing acts of violence.
“Gang members also promoted, coordinated, facilitated and celebrated their narcotics distribution and acts of violence through text messaging and the use of social media applications and websites, including Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat and YouTube,” prosecutors said.
Hill pleaded guilty to conspiracy to engage in a pattern of racketeering activity, prosecutors said, noting that he took part in the four gang-related shootings, two of which were fatal.
On Sept. 26, 2020, Hill and another Exit 8 gang member shot and attempted to murder a member and associate of a rival gang. May 19, 2021, Hill and other Exit 8 gang members conspired to kill rival gang members, including a rival gang member who was shot and killed that day by another Exit 8 member, according to prosecutors.
On July 5, 2021, Hill and another Exit 8 member shot and killed an individual, and on April 12, 2022, Hill and another Exit 8 member shot and attempted to kill rival gang members, prosecutors said.
Hill’s sentencing is not yet scheduled, but he has been detained since Aug. 3, 2023, and faces a maximum prison sentence of 20 years. The investigation is currently being conducted by the ATF, the FBI, the DEA, the New Haven Police Department, the Hamden Police Department and the New Haven State’s Attorney’s Office, with help from the Connecticut State Police and Connecticut Forensic Science, prosecutors said.
The prosecution is part of the Justice Department’s Project Safe Neighborhoods program and the Project Longevity and Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces program.
PSN unites all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make neighborhoods safer for everyone, while Project Longevity is a comprehensive effort to lessen gun violence in Connecticut’s major cities.
“Through Project Longevity, community members and law enforcement directly engage with members of groups that are prone to commit violence and deliver a community message against violence, a law enforcement message about the consequences of further violence and an offer of help for those who want it,” prosecutors said.
Meanwhile, OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs and transnational criminal organizations by using prosecutor-led and intelligence-driven approaches to leverage the strengths of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies.
More information about the OCDETF Program can be located here.
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Dalton Zbierski is a digital content producer at FOX61 News. He can be reached at dzbierski@FOX61.com.
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