Founder of anti-gang group with deep ties to City Hall charged with ‘Bloods’ death threat

A prominent anti-gang activist with ties to City Hall is accused of threatening to sic the Bloods on his Brooklyn neighbor.

“I’m going to get my people, the Bloods, to come handle you. I’m going to have you killed," activist Shanduke McPhatter told his neighbor, according to a criminal complaint.

The former Bloods member’s group, Gangstas Making Astronomical Community Changes, has been a fixture at protests against gun violence alongside prominent politicians since it first partnered with City Hall in 2014.

Last month, McPhatter, who founded the group, attended a meeting with Mayor de Blasio and received a proclamation from Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams. Public Advocate Jumaane Williams has contributed city funds to G-MACC for years. The Mayor’s Office to Prevent Gun Violence listed G-MACC as a resource for recently-released Rikers Island inmates. The advocacy group received more than $1.5 million in city funding between 2014 and 2018, according to its most recent non-profit tax filing.

But McPhatter’s recent arrest for threatening his neighbor, who works in traffic enforcement for the NYPD, as well as a recent federal takedown of a Rikers Island contraband ring, have raised questions about the anti-gang group.

Two of the people charged in the bust have ties to the advocacy group, which includes former gang members who know first-hand the danger of street life. A G-MACC staffer and McPhatter’s brother are among those charged with the smuggling operation allegedly involving crooked correction officers.

City Hall said it was unaware of “the extent” of the allegations involving G-MACC. The group is no longer providing re-entry services to former Rikers inmates as the city conducts a review.

“The described allegations are unacceptable and of great concern. To ensure G-MACC is able to serve our neighborhoods in a manner that reflects the values of our administration, we are requiring the organization to strengthen their internal protocols and procedures," City Hall spokeswoman Avery Cohen said.

McPhatter is accused of threatening his neighbor on Carlton Ave. in Brooklyn on Dec. 23. After threatening to call in the Bloods, McPhatter again menaced the neighbor on Jan. 2, prosecutors say.

“Hey copper, I have not forgotten what I said, I’m going to finish what I said, I’m going to shoot you,” McPhatter, 41, allegedly said.

He was arrested on Jan. 6, charged with misdemeanor menacing and harassment, and released without bail.

Two weeks later on Martin Luther King Day, McPhatter attended a meeting of the city’s Anti-Violence Crisis Management System. The initiative “uses credible messengers -- many of whom have previous involvement in the criminal justice system -- to identify and mediate conflicts before they escalate in areas with high gun violence,” according to City Hall. McPhatter posted a video of himself as de Blasio spoke in the background.

“Showing the world what this movement is. Making sure people feel the appreciation and support,” de Blasio told the small gathering. “We’re all aiming for the same thing.”

McPhatter delivered a speech at Brooklyn Borough Hall two days later, advocating for formerly incarcerated people, according to his social media. He received a proclamation honoring his efforts.

“The Borough President was unaware of Mr. McPhatter’s arrest until now. In the years the Borough President has interacted with Mr. McPhatter, he has known him to have a strong commitment to ending gun violence," Adams spokesman Jonah Allon said.

McPhatter is due in court on Feb. 5.

“I have advised my client not to speak with the press as we work through the criminal process pursuant to Mr. McPhatter’s recent arrest," Legal Aid attorney John Williams said. “As he has from the beginning of the case, Mr. McPhatter emphatically denies the charges in this case.”

But as McPhatter fights the case, G-MACC associates are also the subject of a major federal contraband investigation at Rikers Island.

One alleged intermediary in the contraband scheme, Jonathan “Trigg” Medina, was a “violence interrupter supervisor” who led mediation workshops for G-MACC at Rikers, according to an online bio. He last worked in the jail in November 2017, a Department of Correction spokesman said.

McPhatter posted a photo with Medina, 29, on Instagram in December.

An inmate allegedly at the center of the smuggling, James “Jah Blize” Albert, identifies himself as “director of operation” of G-MACC on LinkedIn. A source with knowledge confirmed that Albert has also used the name James McPhatter, who was identified in a 2014 article as co-founder of G-MACC. Albert and Shanduke McPhatter are brothers, the source said.

Federal prosecutors in Brooklyn say Medina and Albert, 43, were among those involved in a months-long plot to sneak weed and suboxone into Rikers by bribing six corrupt correction officers. The two used Bloods lingo like “Oakland Raider jerseys” for marijuana, “Jungle” for Brooklyn and “pink panties” for a correction officer, according to a criminal complaint.

Albert had not worked for G-MACC at Rikers, the DOC spokesman said.

G-MACC had provided a variety of programming at the jail, including a seven-week workshop for incarcerated adolescents, according to its website. G-MACC worked at the jail off and on beginning in 2015. They last provided “limited conflict resolution services” in June 2019, the DOC spokesman said.

G-MACC was allowed into the jail over the objections of DOC’s intel unit, which was troubled by social media showing members of the group flashing gang signs, a former high-ranking member of the unit said.

“We were against it but we were overruled,” the former member said. The objections, which were raised within the last year, were dismissed due to pressure from City Hall, the source said.

Messages for Medina’s attorney were not returned. Albert, who is currently serving a sentence of 23 years to life in state prison for robbery, had not been assigned an attorney for the contraband case. A lawyer who previously represented Albert declined to comment.

Former Correction commissioner Martin Horn cautioned that isolated instances of jail volunteers smuggling contraband should not diminish the importance of partnerships with community groups.

“You can do all the vetting in the world. At the end of the day we’re dependent upon the people,” said Horn, who teaches at John Jay College of Criminal Justice. “The question always has to be, did we take reasonable steps to minimize risk?”

The Brooklyn Borough President’s office agreed, citing declines in violence where G-MACC operated in East Flatbush.

“The model has proven to be extremely effective," the spokesman said.

This is not the first time G-MACC advocates have been accused of smuggling contraband into the jail, however. A reformed gang member in the group was busted in Jan. 2018 for attempting to sneak in two razor blades. That resulted in G-MACC being temporarily barred from the jail.

“They are still gang members and they’re manipulating the jail system,” a jails insider said. “They duped the department that they are trying to do good.”

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