Tavon “Bulldog” White, commander of the Black Guerrilla Family gang, was easily able to run illegal operations while serving a 20-year attempted-murder sentence in the Baltimore City Detention Center.
Tavon and his crew sold drugs, marijuana, cell phones, weapons, and contraband including vodka, champagne, and shrimp. They raked in up to $16,000 per month.
So how did this go on under the noses of all the guards? Well… some of the women were coerced with sex and sweet-talk, and the male ones were paid off in cash and contraband.
Thirteen corrupt female corrections officers were caught in a sting operation for taking bribes and acting as lookouts, while four of them actually had children by Tavon.
These are the baby mamas:
- Tiffany Linder, 28, was eight months pregnant when she stood trial. She was accused of tipping off her man to a shakedown in the jail.
- Chania Brooks, 28, drove a Mercedes Benz courtesy of Tavon’s outside connections.
- Katera Stevenson, 27, also drove a Benz provided by the sweet-talking gang leader.
- Jennifer Owens, 33, had Tavon’s name tattooed on her neck and gave birth to not one, but two of his babies.
Tavon White was charged in the plot to smuggle the contraband, along with the prison guards, six of his fellow inmates and five others with gang ties who operated outside the jails.
MyFoxDC.com reported the ring became even more brazen over time, with the cocky kingpinquoted as saying, “This is my jail. I am the law, I make every final call in this jail.”
As it turned out, Tavon’s testimony became prosecutors’ most valuable weapon and he spent five days on the stand telling all. In the end, 40 people, including 24 corrections officers, have been convicted in the prison corruption case.
At the sentencing, Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert Harding told U.S. District Judge Ellen Hollander that Tavon White deserved a sizeable reduction from the maximum sentence because of his cooperation.
“He has assumed a risk he will have to live with for the rest of his life,” said the D.A. “It took great courage to do what he did. This is a man in danger. He became a favorite of prison officials because he quelled violence. He generally made conditions less violent than it would have been otherwise.” So in other words, he’s a lover not a fighter – yeah, we got that!
Tavon’s attorney, Gary Proctor, said the informative inmate is making an effort to turn his life around, and has earned his G.E.D. while behind bars. Plus, he argued, even if he wanted to return to gang activity, Tavon cooperating in such a high-profile case would make that pretty much impossible. Nobody likes a snitch.
In exchange for his testimony and naming the officers involved, ringleader will serve a 12-year sentence concurrently with the 20-year attempted murder rap he was already in for, which means he will not do any additional time.
“Mr. White will be looking over his shoulder the rest of his life,” said his attorney.
