Feds: Bridgeport man gets 17 years in prison
Sentenced for attempting to kill rival gang members
A Bridgeport man was sentenced to more than 17 years in prison Friday for multiple gangrelated shootings, according to federal prosecutors.
Undrea Kirkland, 25, who is also known as “Spooda,” pleaded guilty in September to conspiracy to engage in a pattern of racketeering activity. A federal judge in New Haven gave him a 210month prison sentence, or 17 years and six months, followed by three years of supervised release for the charge, according to Leonard Boyle, the United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut.
Kirkland’s charge stems from his time as a member of the “Greene Homes Boyz” or “GHB/ Hotz” gang based in the Charles F. Greene Homes housing complex in Bridgeport’s North End, officials said.
The gang is known to distribute heroin, crack cocaine and Percocet pills in the city, as well as commit violent acts against rival gangs, according to Boyle’s office.
Boyle and Assistant States Attorneys Rahul Kale, Jocelyn Courtney Kaoutzanis and Stephanie Levick argued that Kirkland was an “early member” of the gang.
“The goal of the GHB gang was to control the City of Bridgeport, and he personally participated in three shootings that amplified GHB’s notoriety in
Bridgeport,” the prosecutors said in a sentencing memorandum.
The first took place in May 2015. Kirkland shot and attempted to kill “KJ,” a member or associate of the 150 gang, a rival, near Park and Shelton streets in Bridgeport’s East Side, Boyle’s office said.
Three years later, Kirkland and others attempted to kill other members or associates of the East End gang, another rival, at the Sunshine Deli on Stratford Avenue in February 2018. During the gunfire, a man who was trying to sell cakes with his daughter dove to the floor and was struck by a bullet in his buttock, according to Kirkland’s sentencing memorandum.
That October, Kirkland and others shot and attempted to kill a member or associate of the East End gang inside the Greene Homes housing complex, according to Boyle’s office.
Boyle’s office said Kirkland also appeared in music videos on YouTube, surrounding by other GHB/Hotz members and members of their ally, the Original North End gang, with a firearm and a 50-round drum discussing their “acts of violence” and “celebrating a jury acquittal in his state trial for attempted murder.”
Kirkland has been detained since April 11, 2019.
In a letter to the court, Kirkland said he wants to turn his life around and “help others avoid the mistakes in life that he has made,” according to his sentencing memorandum.
“I lost many friends to gun violence. And for what? Nothing,” Kirkland wrote. “When I die, I want to be remembered as someone other people are proud to have known.”
“Since being in jail for the past three years, I have changed a great deal,” he continued. “Jail has opened my eyes to the fact that there are bigger things in life than living in the streets.
“As a result, I want to use my prison time to better myself. I want to attend every class that would be available to me to gain skills for good employment after I am released from prison.”
Kirkland also said he wants to become a counselor for “innercity, troubled youth.”
“This will allow me to give younger people the knowledge and encouragement that was not given to me,” he said.
“I want younger people to know that there’s a big world with greater opportunity than exists in their neighborhoods. I will encourage young people to learn in school to gain the necessary tools to succeed.”
Kirkland was one of eight alleged gang members who federal officials charged with drug trafficking and attempted murders in February 2021.