The Lords of Plainfield
The Birth of an East Coast Crip Gang
Since the 1990s there has been a gradual transformation of the traditional neighborhood-based gangs, often known only by the name of a street, intersection or housing project, to sub-sets of the Crips and Bloods. Many police officers have been quick to dismiss these sets as pretenders if their ties to major cities like New York or Los Angeles are not readily apparent. Such was the case in suburban Maryland where two brothers and a few relatives gave life to a Crip nation that would expand its influence up and down the east coast without being recognized for the criminal organization that it was.
As the crack cocaine epidemic took its toll on inner-city America, group of three young men in Plainfield, New Jersey – two brothers and their friend – quietly began their careers as drug dealers. As products of a broken family the two brothers – who were among seven siblings – had spent much of their early years apart with one living in Las Vegas and the other in New York. Now in Plainfield, the three adopted the name “Money Making Lords” (MML) and marked themselves with amateur tattoos of crowns bearing their nicknames; Dogg, K-Hard and Krilz. By the early 1990s the three had moved north from Plainfield to the Gowanus Housing Projects in Brooklyn, New York – a community already feeling the presence of the Crips and Bloods. Despite being seasoned drug dealers they now found themselves as small fish in a large and violent pond; their situation summarized in television drug dealer Slim Charles’ statement “The game is the same, it just got more fierce.” (The Wire, HBO)
Lacking in members and strength, the MML found that they could not survive as an independent organization in a community divided between Crips and Bloods. With the assistance of friends and relatives who were already immersed in the gang culture and the blessing of a Crip O.G. nicknamed “Gorilla”, the MML were permitted to “walk in” and become a part of the Gowanus Project Gangster Crips (GPGC). In the mid 1990s the three, all with the beginnings of impressive arrest records, again crossed state lines and settled in Frederick County, Maryland. This time the three were joined by a small group of relatives who also moved from New York City and other jurisdictions to Maryland. By 1997 the three New Jersey teens who once called themselves the Money Making Lords had become a Maryland-based gang known as the Money Making Lord Gangster Crips, later shortened to the Money Making Gangster Crips (MMGC). While the group still maintained strong ties to New York and the Gowanus Projects, they seemingly concentrated their efforts on expanding their influence throughout the western counties of Maryland. They sold crack cocaine without drawing too much unwanted attention from police until the spring of 2000 when the actions of one member abruptly pushed them into the spotlight.
In May of 2000, MMGC member Andrew Devon Wilmore was arrested for the murder of a man believed to be a member of the rival John Hanson United (JHU) gang. A year later as he was led from a courtroom to begin his life sentence, Wilmore had no comment about his fate except to tell reporters “It’s what I expected.” (Dorsey, G. - 2001). Even if this were true, neither he nor his fellow gang members could possibly realize the long-term impact of his actions. As they continued illegal operations, the murder had put the once-unnoticed Crips in the sights of law enforcement.-- to be continued –
References:
Simon, D. and Pelecanos, G. (Writers) & Dickerson, E. (Director)
The Wire, Episode 29: Hamsterdam (2006)
HBO, Incorporated
Dorsey, G. (June 7, 2001). “It’s what I expected” – Man, 19, gets life for murder
Frederick News Post
