Long-running gang feud fueled mall shooting

Feb. 06--The rival Hub street gangs linked to a spate of recent shootings -- including at the South Shore Plaza Friday where shoppers scrambled for their lives -- have a history marked by bloody violence against each other, said a former high-ranking Boston police supervisor.

"This is an ongoing feud, beefs that go back years and years ago," said ex-BPD Superintendent-in-Chief Daniel Linskey, who is now a security consultant. "They have an engage-in-violence-on-sight policy with each other."

Linskey noted that the gangs have been on Boston police radar for years, citing a 2007 sweep that netted more than a dozen gang members.

The Herald reported yesterday the long-standing gang beef between Lucerne and Morse streets gangs ratcheted up when Jovani Jeudy, who police believe was affiliated with Lucerne, was fatally shot Jan. 21 on Nightingale Street in Dorchester, according to a law enforcement memo obtained by the Herald.

"Initial information received indicated that Lucerne may hold Morse associates responsible for this incident," the memo states, warning that the Friday night shooting at South Shore Plaza in Braintree and Saturday at Jeudy's funeral services may spark more violence.

With the exception of reported gunfire in South Boston and the shooting at the mall, the gang violence centered in Dorchester, the memo states.

When asked about the rivalry, Mayor Martin J. Walsh said in a statement yesterday: "A large part of curtailing gang violence is doing the necessary outreach and keeping guns off our streets. I look forward to continuing my work with the BPD to do just that."

BPD spokesman Lt. Detective Michael McCarthy wouldn't directly comment on the memo or a police response to the gang links. But he said in a statement: "The Boston Police Department continues to focus our efforts on the individuals driving the violence in the city. The Youth Violence Strike Force works closely with other Department specialized units to identify and monitor individuals we believe are involved in gang violence. We are concerned whenever a young person is harmed by gunfire. Officers have taken over 75 guns off the streets of Boston so far in 2017."

Michael J. Spence, 23, of Quincy, was arrested Saturday morning and is facing weapons charges after police say he started shooting at a rival gang member in the Macy's shoe department at the South Shore Plaza.

___

(c)2017 the Boston Herald

Visit the Boston Herald at www.bostonherald.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.