Members Of “Robles Park” Racketeering Enterprise Sentenced For Attempted Murder, Series Of Shootings, Drug Trafficking, And Committing Millions In Fraud

Tampa, Florida – U.S. District Judge Mary S. Scriven has sentenced Keaujay Hornsby, a/k/a “Plug,” (26, Tampa) to 16 years and 9 months in federal prison and Kareem Spann, a/k/a “Reem,” (27, Tampa) to 10 years and 10 months in federal prison for criminal conduct committed by, and on behalf of, the Racketeering Influenced and Corrupt Organization (RICO) group known as the “Robles Park Enterprise.” These crimes included a series of shootings, attempted murder, drug trafficking, fraud, and identity theft. Spann had pleaded guilty on February 7, 2023, and Hornsby had pleaded guilty on July 1, 2023.

According to court documents and evidence presented at sentencing, in the early morning of July 19, 2020, Hornsby and other members of the Enterprise congregated outside the Truth Lounge club in Tampa, Florida. The streets and sidewalks were flooded with people, including rival gang members in the parking lot outside the club. Spann was driving while Hornsby occupied the front passenger seat, with a loaded gun resting on his lap. Spann drove a black Infinity through the crowd, while Hornsby engaged in a verbal altercation with rival gang members. Suddenly, Hornsby and the rival gang members ignited a mass shooting in which Hornsby pulled out his gun and unleashed a barrage of gunfire into the crowd. Panic ensued, with surveillance video capturing the immediate chaos as the crowd scattered for safety. Law enforcement later recovered dozens of ammunition casings. The shooting resulted in the injury of at least eight people, including minors, some of whom were shot in the jaw, shoulder, elbow, wrist, finger, foot, arms, and legs.

Six days later, on Saturday, July 25, 2020, and in retaliation for the Truth Lounge shooting, three rival gang members ambushed Hornsby and Spann as they exited the International Plaza in Tampa. On that afternoon, three individuals surrounded the defendants and opened fire. Hornsby took Spann’s gun and returned fire. In total, seven vehicles were struck by gunfire, including two occupied by bystanders. Law enforcement later determined that at least 25 bullets had been fired from three different firearms.

Two days later, on July 27, 2020, while driving east on Columbus Drive, Hornsby and Spann spotted a rival gang member who was driving south on Rome Street. They followed that individual and waited to get close to him before Hornsby lowered his window, and opened fire on a residential street, unleashing dozens of shots at his target.

In addition to acts of violence, the Robles Park Enterprise also trafficked in cocaine, marijuana, and firearms.

Finally, members of the Robles Park Enterprise, including Hornsby and Spann, worked with one another to unlawfully obtain the personal identifying information (PII) of other persons. They used this PII to submit false applications via interstate wire communications and claim unemployment benefits to which they were not entitled. In total, the defendants submitted over 200 fraudulent claims, in 20 different states, with an intended loss of approximately $2.8 million dollars. For many of those claims, a bank card was issued from the state in which the claim was filed, loaded with Unemployment Insurance funds from financial institutions and sent to the Middle District of Florida. The defendants later used these cards to withdraw cash from ATMs in Tampa and Hollywood, Florida.

On June 10, 2022, a third member of this conspiracy, Tywon Spann was sentenced to six years and nine months imprisonment.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Tampa Police Department, and the Department of Labor, with substantial assistance from the United States Secret Service. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Diego F. Novaes and former Assistant United States attorney Natalie H. Adams.