5-9 Brims Gang Member Pleads Guilty in 2025 Crown Heights Shooting That Killed Three

BROOKLYN, N.Y. — Timothy Spence, a member of the 5-9 Brims gang, pleaded guilty Tuesday in federal court to assault in-aid-of racketeering and a firearms offense tied to the August 17 2025 mass shooting at Taste of the City Lounge in Crown Heights that left three people dead and 10 others wounded.

Spence waived indictment and entered the plea before U.S. District Judge Orelia E. Merchant to charges under 18 U.S.C. § 1959(a)(3) and 18 U.S.C. § 924(c), according to the U.S. Department of Justice. The shooting occurred inside the Brooklyn lounge and triggered a federal racketeering investigation into the 5-9 Brims gang's activities.

Thirteen individuals were shot during the incident. Three died. The plea resolves Spence's direct criminal liability for the attack but does not conclude the broader probe into the gang's racketeering enterprise.

At sentencing Spence faces a mandatory minimum of 10 years in prison and a maximum of life imprisonment on the firearms count, which carries a consecutive sentence. The racketeering count adds further prison exposure under federal guidelines.

The guilty plea shifts the case from pretrial litigation to sentencing proceedings before Judge Merchant. Federal prosecutors must now file any sentencing submissions on schedule, while Spence's counsel will present mitigation arguments. The outcome will set a precedent for sentencing other 5-9 Brims members charged in related violence.

This marks the first guilty plea secured in the federal case stemming from the August 17 2025 shooting. The Department of Justice has pursued multiple racketeering and firearms prosecutions against 5-9 Brims members in the Eastern District of New York in recent years as part of its ongoing effort to dismantle the gang's operations in Brooklyn.

Primary sources: U.S. Department of Justice