Acting United States Attorney Karin Hoppmann announced today the unsealing of an indictment charging 16 individuals with violent crimes in aid of racketeering.
According to the indictment, the defendants were members of Unforgiven, a racketeering enterprise engaged in acts of murder, violence, kidnapping, robbery, obstruction of justice, and other offenses. The indictment also alleges that Unforgiven used “corrupt law enforcement officers and state employees†to gather information about people, investigations, and prosecutions, and to smuggle contraband to incarcerated inmates. The indictment charges each of the 16 defendants with committing at least one violent act in aid of Unforgiven, including kidnappings, conspiracies to commit assault, threats of violence, and assaults with deadly weapons.
Among the defendants are:
Maverick Maher, a/k/a Saxon, 39, of PensacolaÂ
George Andrews, II, a/k/a Shrek, 51, of Pensacola
Brandon Welch, a/k/a Scumbag, 34, of Milton
An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Pasco Sheriff’s Office, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, the St. Petersburg Police Department, and the Drug Enforcement Administration. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Natalie Hirt Adams.