*A former Department of Justice employee is accused of “repeatedly” helping the Bloods street gang protect its interests by exposing informants, CNN reports.
Tawanna Hilliard worked as an administrator for the US Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey, and court documents show that over a period of more than two years, she used her access to sensitive information to help her son Tyquan Hilliard, 28, and his gang, the 5-9 Brims set of the Bloods.
Hilliards has been charged with six felony counts, each carries a maximum 20-year prison sentence, the report states. She has also been charged with illegally obtaining information from a protected government computer.
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US Attorney paralegal helped gangbanger son go after ‘snitches’: feds https://t.co/LiFmvzS48k pic.twitter.com/kjuLy4r2dQ
— New York Post (@nypost) August 13, 2019
via Washington Post:
While working as a paralegal, prosecutors say, Tawanna Hilliard, 44, used her government-issued computer to identify and expose “snitches” — potential witnesses who were providing authorities with information about gang activities. The Brooklyn resident, who pleaded not guilty to a slew of charges Tuesday, allegedly found sensitive information in databases of criminal cases, then passed it along to the 5-9 Brims, at the behest of a high-ranking member of the gang. She also allegedly outed her son’s accomplice in a 2018 robbery, opening up him and his family to death threats.
In May 2018, Tyquan and another man from Brooklyn, identified only as John Doe, were arrested on multiple felony charges for robbing an AT&T store in Monticello, N.Y. The co-defendant would go on to throw Tyquan under the bus to investigators. Tawanna got hold of his video statement and allegedly posted it on YouTube, titling it, “NYC Brim Gang Member Snitching Pt. 1.”
According to court documents, she sent text messages to numerous people warning that more videos were coming, and that John Doe was “giving up murders, victims, shooters and all.”
Tyquan allegedly made similar statements from behind bars, threatening to upload more videos.
Both mother and son now face charges including witness tampering, obstruction of justice, conspiracy and obtaining information from a government computer.
After pleading not guilty on Tuesday, Tawanna was released on $75,000 bond and barred from contacting her son or any other gang members while awaiting trial. Tyquan is serving 10-years on robbery and assault charges related to the holdup at the cellphone store. He has not yet been arraigned on the new charges.
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