Two men have been found guilty of all charges relating to a January 2022 violent crime spree, marking the final conviction in a massive four-defendant indictment.

Walike Parham, 24, and Kyair Keys, 20, could face life in prison for their roles in an eight-day violent crime spree involving four shootings, including one that shattered the windows of a nearby daycare while three infants were inside, along with multiple vehicle thefts and high-speed pursuits.

“The defendants in this case gravely endangered our community, including three infants who were put in serious danger,” said Attorney General Jennings. “The defendants will now face the consequences for their crimes — collectively more than a century in prison time. I’m grateful for the jury and judges’ verdicts, for the safety of the victims, and for the police and prosecutors who have been working successfully to reduce gun violence across our state.”

“These arrests, and the investigation that followed, interrupted a crime spree that involved multiple shooting incidents and other violent crimes that posed a serious threat to our community,” said Chief Wilfredo Campos. “I appreciate the efforts of our investigators and our collaboration with the Attorney General’s Office to hold these violent offenders accountable for their actions.”

Parham faces a minimum mandatory 61 year sentence, while Keys’ minimum mandatory sentence is 49 years.
Convictions like Keys’ have contributed to a precipitous drop in gun violence in Wilmington: murders in Wilmington have fallen by about 50% since 2020. Shootings statewide have declined by about 30% in the same period.

Parham was found guilty of three counts of Attempted Murder 1st Degree, two counts of Possession of a Firearm During the Commission of a Felon, two counts of Possession of a Firearm by a Person Prohibited, two counts of Conspiracy 1st Degree, two counts of Theft of a Motor Vehicle, two counts of Conspiracy 2nd Degree, two counts of Criminal Mischief, and Resisting Arrest.

Keys was convicted of Attempted Murder 1st Degree, two counts of Attempted Assault 1st Degree, five counts of Possession of a Firearm During the Commission of a Felony, four counts of Possession of a Firearm by a Person Prohibited, two counts of Reckless Endangering 1st Degree, Conspiracy 1st Degree, two counts of Conspiracy 2nd Degree, two counts of Criminal Mischief, Disregarding a Police Officer’s Signal, and Resisting Arrest.

Two other co-defendants were previously convicted. Markel Richards, 21, was sentenced to 21 years in prison, and Jahmir Morris-Whitt, 21, will be sentenced to 7-12 years in prison in 2024.

These convictions were secured by Deputy Attorneys General Jill Schroeder and Jenna Milecki, with support from DOJ Social Worker Lisa Rapko, Paralegal Cait Lynam, Administrative Assistant Jessica Quillen, and Trial Management Analyst Ted Griffin. The investigation was led by Det. Brendan Wham of the Wilmington Police Department.

Attorney General Kathy Jennings announced Friday that Delaware’s Medicaid program would receive $7,666,379.00 following a settlement that would resolve federal False Claims Act (FCA) and Delaware False Claims and Reporting Act (DFCRA) allegations against Christiana Care Health System (CCHS).

The case, which was initiated by a whistleblower, alleges that CHSS provided free or below-market value support services to non-employee doctors, who then referred patients to CHSS.  These referrals in turn led to CHSS billing Medicaid.

State and federal authorities maintain that the providing of these free or below-market value support services induced referrals in violation of Delaware’s Patient Brokering and Anti-Kickback laws.  Because the inducements were unlawful, any resulting billing to Medicaid was a false (fraudulent) claim, and thus illegal under the FCA and DFCRA.

“Kickbacks harm us all by inducing improper billing to the State’s Medicaid program,” Attorney General Jennings said.  “The Delaware Department of Justice will continue to protect our state’s healthcare programs from fraud.”

The settlement resolves allegations that CHSS submitted, or caused the submission of, false claims to Medicaid by providing support services (including CHSS nurse practitioners, hospitalists, and physician assistants) to non-CHSS physicians at no cost or below fair market value.  The alleged false claims occurred between April 1, 2011, and September 30, 2013, with respect to the CHSS neonatology department, and between April 1, 2011, and April 14, 2017, with respect to CHSS’s cardiovascular surgery, urology, neurosurgery, and ear nose and throat departments.

This settlement arises from a qui tam action originally filed in April of 2017 in the United States District Court for the District of Delaware.

The Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit receives 75 percent of its funding from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under a grant award totaling $2,184,000.00 for Federal fiscal year 2024.  The remaining 25 percent, totaling $727,996.00 for FY 2023, is funded by the State of Delaware.

This case was handled for the DOJ by Deputy Attorneys General Ed Black and Stephen McDonald, with support from Legal Administrative Specialists Maria Smigel and Candice Sullivan, all of the Fraud and Consumer Protection Unit’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit.

Comes after initiating joint effort with federal and state partners

Attorney General Kathy Jennings announced today that, due to the work of her office, along with the federal Consumer Protection Financial Bureau and 11 other states, a Delaware bankruptcy court approved a stipulated judgment that will require bankrupt student lender Prehired to provide more than $30 million in relief to student borrowers nationwide, for making false promises of job placement, trapping students with income share loans that violated the law, and resorting to abusive debt collection practices when borrowers could not pay. The order approved by a federal bankruptcy court requires Prehired to cease all operations, permits the potential payment of $4.2 million in redress to consumers that were affected by its illegal practices, and voids all of its outstanding income share loans, valued by Prehired at nearly $27 million.

“When Prehired decided to use the Delaware courts to perpetrate an illegal nationwide debt collection scheme, my office quickly took action to stop them in their tracks.  Today, through an effort that grew to include 11 other states and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, we are pleased to announce this resolution that will provide real relief to borrowers around the country,” said Attorney General Jennings.  “My office will continue to do the work to ensure that Delaware’s courts and judicial system are not used to perpetrate frauds, either here in Delaware or across the nation.”

Prehired operated a 12-week online training program claiming to prepare students for entry-level positions as software sales development representatives with “sixfigure salaries” and a “job guarantee.” Prehired offered students “income share” loans to help finance their costs of the program. Today’s order also names two affiliated companies, Prehired Recruiting and Prehired Accelerator, that pursued collection on defaulted income share loans.

AG Jennings’ Consumer Protection Unit initially took action in early 2022, starting the chain of events that the led to today’s nationwide resolution. That investigation began after Prehired filed nearly 300 debt-collection lawsuits in the Delaware Justice of the Peace Court seeking to enforce its income share agreements. Prehired started filing the lawsuits one month after forming two Delaware limited liability companies, including the plaintiff in the debt collection actions. Prehired voluntarily dismissed those cases after the CPU expressed its concerns in a March 8 letter that virtually all of the defendants resided outside of Delaware and had no practical way to defend themselves in the lawsuits. Just days later, Prehired began refiling those same cases on the Ejudicate online arbitration platform—even though students never agreed to arbitrate on Ejudicate. Once again, the Consumer Protection Unit acted quickly seeking to stop the illegal arbitrations.

More information about today’s order can be found in a companion release issued by the CFPB today, available here.  A copy of the federal bankruptcy court’s order is available here.

In addition to the work of its sister states and the CFPB, AG Jennings also recognizes the efforts of the Delaware Justice of the Peace Courts for acting promptly to stay the lawsuits filed by Prehired against hundreds of consumers.

Delaware DOJ’s efforts on this matter were handled by the staff of AG Jennings’ Consumer Protection Unit, as well as former Deputy Attorney General Katie Devanney, whose efforts were critical to bringing Prehired practices to light.

Attorney General Kathy Jennings announced Tuesday that a New Castle County jury convicted Keith Gibson of 25 charges,including two counts of murder, relating to a brutal crime spree in the summer of 2021. He faces a mandatory life sentence.

“Our prosecutors did phenomenal work on a deeply disturbing case,” said Attorney General Jennings. “The defendant carried out a vicious, cold-blooded crime spree, killing two and injuring four people in Delaware, and facing pending charges for yet more violence in Pennsylvania. He was armed and wearing a bulletproof vest when law enforcement arrested him, and it is difficult to fathom how much more destruction he would have caused had he not been apprehended. I’m proud of our prosecutors and of law enforcement who ensured that he will spend the rest of his life in a prison cell. Above all else, we are thinking of his victims, including those whose lives were cut short and whose families are still healing from this man’s crimes.”

On May 15, 2021, Gibson shot and killed Leslie Ruiz-Basilio, 28, during a robbery at a Metro PCS store on Kirkwood Highway in Elsmere and stole her vehicle. Less than a month later, Gibson shot and killed Ronald Wright, 42, during a street robbery, and assaulted another victim. Over the following three days, Gibson robbed and/or assaulted another three victims, including attempted murder against one, along with a host of weapons and drug offenses. Gibson was arrested on June 8 in connection with the robbery of a Wilmington Rite-Aid.

Gibson’s convictions are as follows:

• Four counts of Murder 1^st Degree
• Attempted Murder 1^st Degree
• Thirteen counts of Possession of a Firearm during the Commission of a Felony
• Four counts of Robbery 1^st Degree
• Conspiracy 2^nd Degree
• Theft of a Motor Vehicle
• Wearing Body Armor During the Commission of a Felony

Additional charges against Gibson, including several drug charges, are pending in Superior Court.

Gibson’s conviction was secured by Deputy Attorneys General John Downs and Ipek Kurul. Deputy Attorneys General Matt Frawley and Sam Kenney also worked on the case, including on securing Gibson’s indictment. The prosecution was supported by Senior Paralegal Stacey Coupe and Social Workers Donna Lindsey and Marilyn Torres. The investigation was led by the Wilmington Police Department and the Elsmere Police Department, with support from law enforcement partners in the New Castle County Police Department, the Newport Police Department, the City of New Castle Police Department, the Newark Police Department, the Philadelphia Police Department, Homeland Security Investigations, the FBI, and the ATF, in addition to support from T-Mobile Asset Protection and the Ruiz-Basilio family.

Prosecutors indicted and convicted 20 defendants for murder, shooting, and other felonies; shootings down 30% since 2020

A successful murder trial has completed the State’s four-year prosecution against a major Wilmington-area gang with a 100% conviction rate, Attorney General Kathy Jennings announced Tuesday. The State’s efforts have secured more than 100 years of confirmed prison time, and several defendants yet to be sentenced face multiple potential life sentences.

“This is an exclamation point on a case that our team has lived and breathed for more than four years,” said AG Jennings. “These gang members are responsible for unthinkable violence in our city, for losses of lives that can never be restored, and for the pain and suffering of the victims’ families and every City resident who has borne the cost of gun violence. I’m proud that our team convicted every defendant. I’m heartened by the progress that gang prosecutions have helped us make as we’ve reduced shootings by 30% since 2020. And I’m grateful for the life-saving efforts of the Wilmington Police Department and all of our partners in this investigation.”

“The results of the long-term investigation into this violent gang are nothing short of remarkable, with a total of 20 defendants convicted in a slew of criminal cases that encompassed four murders, a six-person shooting incident, six additional shooting incidents, a robbery and a number of gun offenses,” said Chief Wilfredo Campos. “I am proud of the work of our detectives, and appreciative of the partnership of our fellow law enforcement agencies as well as prosecutors in the Delaware Department of Justice. This investigation has undoubtedly saved lives and prevented shootings and other violent crime, and we hope that this serves as a strong reminder to others engaged in gun violence in our community that we will not stop until they are held accountable.”

Deonte Robinson, 22, was convicted at trial of Murder 2^nd Degree, Gang Participation, Conspiracy 1^st Degree, and Conspiracy 2^nd Degree, and faces 15 years to life at sentencing. Robinson was the 20^th, and final, defendant convicted under a massive four-year prosecution against the violent gang MGS.

The State’s case against MGS (“M-Block Grimy Savages”) began in September 2019 as an effort to address gang violence in Wilmington through a newly formed Task Force, which consisted of personnel from the Delaware Department of Justice, U.S. Department of Justice, Wilmington Police Department, the ATF, and the FBI.  Traces on crime guns recovered in and around Wilmington helped the Task Force identify MGS as a major driver of violence in Wilmington.

The ensuing investigation identified 19 defendants — 17 adults and 2 juveniles — involved with MGS or aligned gangs and numerous violent felonies, as well as a non-MGS member who contracted a Dover killing.  The crimes included the killings of Shiheem Durham, Naithan Grzybowski, Tommier Dendy, and Eddie Green; a six-victim mass shooting at the intersection of 10^th and Pine Streets in April 2019; six additional shooting cases; a robbery; and numerous gun offenses.

The State ultimately convicted all twenty defendants. In addition to Robinson, the convictions were:

• Jason Calhum, 22, guilty of Murder 1^st Degree (Durham), Gang Participation, Possession of a Firearm During the Commission of a Felony, Money Laundering, Conspiracy 1^st Degree, and three counts of Conspiracy 2^nd Degree
• Khalil Dixon, 26, guilty of Murder 1^st Degree (Durham), Money Laundering, Criminal Solicitation 1^st Degree, Conspiracy 1^st Degree and Conspiracy 2^nd Degree
• Tyrie Burton, 24, guilty of Conspiracy 1^st Degree, Assault 1^st Degree, two counts of Possession of a Firearm During the Commission of a Felony, two counts of Possession of a Firearm by a Person Prohibited, Gang Participation, and Violation of Probation
• Davon Walker, 23, guilty of Murder 2^nd Degree (Grzybowski), Murder 2^nd Degree (Dendy), Murder 2^nd Degree (Green), Gang Participation, and Conspiracy 1^st Degree
• Pierre Carter-Bailey, 23, guilty of Assault 1^st Degree, and Possession of a Firearm During the Commission of a Felony
• Deonta Carney, 23, guilty of Gang Participation
• Zakier Smith, 24, guilty of Assault 2^nd Degree, Possession of a Firearm During the Commission of a Felony, and Gang Participation
• Lloyd Smith, 23, guilty of Possession of a Firearm During the Commission of a Felony, Concealed Carry of a Deadly Weapon, and Conspiracy 2^nd Degree
• Dahmere White, 26, guilty of Possession of a firearm by a Person Prohibited and Gang Participation
• Marcell Dixon, 29, guilty of Concealed Carry of a Deadly Weapon, Gang Participation, and Violation of Probation
• Jakeem Bush, 21, guilty of Gang Participation
• Antonio Wright, 32, guilty of Providing a Firearm to a Person Prohibited, and Gang Participation.
• Nathaniel Murray, 22, guilty of Possession of a Firearm by a Person Prohibited, Concealed Carry of a Deadly Weapon, and Gang Participation.
• Jahmier Robinson-Handy, 21, guilty of Possession of a Firearm by a Person Prohibited and Concealed Carry of a Deadly Weapon.
• Clarence Jarman, 22, guilty of Gang Participation.
• Zyamese Mobley, 24, guilty of Gang Participation.
• Darielle Oliver, 22, no contest to Hindering Prosecution
• Two minors each guilty of Gang Participation.

Since 2020, gun violence in Delaware has been reduced by 30% statewide, including a 50% decline in summer shootings and a 60% reduction in Wilmington homicides.

The convictions against these defendants were secured by Deputy Attorneys General Jamie McCloskey, Erika Flaschner, and AJ Hill following an extensive investigation led by Det. Devon Jones of the Wilmington Police Department. Delaware State Police led the investigation into the murder of Shiheem Durham in Dover. The DOJ’S efforts were made possible by Criminal Intelligence Analyst Dan Masi, Paralegals Julia Bacon and Sarah Molaski, and Social Worker Crystal Pitts.