A federal grand jury has returned a 28-count indictment against 12 alleged members of an Indianapolis racketeering ring called the “Crown Hill Enterprise.” The group is accused of running a violent criminal operation that spanned from early 2019 through December 2024. According to federal prosecutors, the gang used murder, kidnapping, assault, arson, and drug trafficking to control local neighborhoods, with the first defendants making their initial court appearances today in the Southern District of Indiana.
Court documents show the organization allegedly operated at least 11 “trap houses” across Indianapolis to distribute methamphetamine, crack cocaine, powder cocaine, heroin, oxycodone, and fentanyl. To hide the money made from these drug sales, the group allegedly set up fake business entities to launder the cash.
Federal officials stated the gang used extreme violence to protect its drug territory and profits. In one instance detailed in the indictment, defendants Tre J. Dunn and Tanesha Turner allegedly kidnapped a person on November 3, 2024, over a $40 drug debt. Dunn later shot and wounded the victim. The very next day, Dunn and another gang member allegedly beat and shot a man to death simply for “disrespecting” Turner by slamming a door at one of the drug houses.
The indictment also details attempts by the group to intimidate witnesses and block police investigations. On April 23, 2024, defendant Nahamani I. Sargent and other members allegedly fired gunshots and threw Molotov cocktails at a home. Investigators say the gang believed someone inside had given information to the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department, which had led to a previous raid on one of their trap houses. During the overall investigation, law enforcement officers seized 35 firearms, a machinegun conversion device, cash, and illegal drugs.
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“The superseding indictment in this case alleges, among other things, that these defendants shot and killed a man for slamming the door of a drug house, shot another man in the leg for a $40 drug debt, pistol-whipped at least two other people, and dealt all manner of drugs, including heroin, fentanyl, crack cocaine, and methamphetamine,” said Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “This type of alleged drug dealing and violence ruins communities, people, and their families. Drugs and gang violence are a scourge. These groups will be dismantled and prosecuted.”
U.S. Attorney Tom Wheeler for the Southern District of Indiana added that the organization maintained its hold on the community through fear and retaliation against witnesses. “We will not allow groups that traffic deadly drugs, terrorize residents, and retaliate against witnesses to operate with impunity,” Wheeler said.
Law enforcement partners emphasized the scale of the operation and the danger the group posed to the public. FBI Indianapolis Special Agent in Charge Timothy J. O’Malley stated that the case reflects a joint commitment to hold organized criminal groups accountable.
ATF Columbus Special Agent in Charge Jorge A. Rosendo called the violence “both incomprehensible and deeply disturbing,” adding, “Taking human lives over matters so trivial offends the basic sensibilities of any civilized society… Residents of Indianapolis can sleep a little easier tonight knowing these defendants are in custody.”
Deputy Chief of Criminal Investigations Kendale Adams credited strategic, multi-agency enforcement for removing the violent offenders from local neighborhoods. The ongoing case is being investigated by the Department of Justice Violent Crime and Racketeering Section, the FBI, the ATF, and the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department.
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