Four Sentenced for Street Gang Crimes in Cherokee

Four men have entered guilty pleas and been sentenced to prison in connection with a string of entering autos and a shooting in Canton in 2019, the Cherokee County District Attorney’s Office announced.

During separate plea hearings over the past two years, four co-defendants were sentenced to time to serve in prison.

All four are members of Nine Trey Gangsters Bloods, a subgroup of the Bloods.

“When gang members enter our community to commit crimes against our residents, they learn quickly that Cherokee County doesn’t tolerate gang activity. Our law enforcement agencies work together to investigate these crimes, and the District Attorney’s Office is equipped with a specially trained unit to aggressively prosecute them,” District Attorney Susan Treadaway said in a statement.

“In this particular case, through strategic use of the Georgia RICO statute, we successfully prosecuted two gang leaders who never even stepped foot in our county. These men used their gang leadership positions to direct criminal activity here and, ultimately, they both pled guilty to their crimes and were sentenced to prison,” added District Attorney Treadaway.

According to the district attorney’s office, just after 4:15 a.m. Jan. 24, 2019, Canton police responded to a report of entering autos on Oconee Way. After a resident witnessed two men breaking into his car and attempted to intervene, one of the men fired shots at him.

Officers later found a bullet hole in the witness’s garage, bullet holes in a neighbor’s residence and vehicle, and shell casings in the street. Prosecutors said the men entered a total of 19 vehicles, all of which were unlocked at the time.

The men who fired shots were identified as Damonte Dekeys Brown (aka Domo), 24, of Kennesaw, and Kadarius Keyonte Odims (aka Kato/Kruxial), 23, of Powder Springs.

Two additional co-defendants — Shaquavion Adkins (aka Red Eye), 28, of Athens, and Trentavious Watkins (aka Epik/Big Homie Epik), 25, of Athens, who hold leadership roles in Nine Trey Gangsters Bloods — were charged for their part in the criminal activity, which included requiring Odims to pay dues to the gang.

“The co-defendants worked together as an enterprise for the purpose of illegally obtaining money and property. Money generated through organized criminal activity is typically used to pay gang membership dues or to further the interests of the gang,” said Assistant District Attorney Kelly Chavis, who prosecuted the case.

The indictment for Brown and Odims included 75 charges: violation of the Racketeer Influence and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act (two counts), violation of Street Gang Act (47 counts), aggravated assault, possession of firearm during commission of a felony, entering an automobile (19 counts), criminal damage to property in the first degree (2 counts), financial transaction card theft, unlawful for person employed by or associated with criminal street gang, and theft by taking.

“In text message conversations prior to the crimes, both Watkins and Adkins reached out to Odims to make sure his dues were paid,” Chavis said. “Odims came to Cherokee County for the specific purpose of committing crimes to pay his dues to the Nine Trey Gangster Bloods.”

According to Chavis, Adkins admitted that he ran a large territory of Nine Trey Gangster Bloods in Georgia and that he had reached the rank of “First Floor.” Adkins brought Watkins into the gang, and Watkins asked Adkins for permission to bring Odims into the gang. They both lined up under Adkins. Brown was an associate of Nine Trey Gangster Bloods and had committed several crimes with Odims.

The four co-defendants entered guilty pleas at different hearings over the past two years:

♦ Brown pleaded guilty to all 75 charges and entered a non-negotiated plea on June 23, 2022. Superior Court Judge Tony Baker sentenced him to 50 years, with the first 12 years to serve in prison.

♦ Odims pleaded guilty to the same 75 charges in a non-negotiated plea on Aug. 16, 2020. Senior Superior Court Judge Jack Partain sentenced him to 30 years, with the first 20 years to serve in prison.

♦ Adkins entered a negotiated guilty plea on August 16, 2022, admitting to one count of violation of the Street Gang Act. He was sentenced to 10 years, with the first year to be served in confinement.

♦ Watkins entered a negotiated guilty plea on April 17, 2024, admitting to one count of violation of Street Gang Act. He was sentenced to 10 years, with the first year to be served in confinement.

All four men were banned from Cherokee County and ordered to have no contact with the victims, co-defendant, or any known gang members, especially those associated with the Bloods and Nine Trey Gangster Bloods.