Ex-gang chief gets 14 years in prison

A former leader of the violent street gang known as the Playboy Bloods was sentenced Wednesday to 14 years in prison for conspiring to engage in racketeering.

Anthony "Akim Slim" Mabry was one of 10 members of the gang who were arrested in October 2008 after a federal investigation into the gang's activities. Four of the defendants are accused of committing murder and are eligible for the death penalty.

Mabry, 39, said he sold drugs to support his eight children, but he denied participating in the gang's acts of violence.

"I wasn't no vicious person out there," he said.

Mabry pleaded guilty to the conspiracy charge in February as part of a plea agreement. The deal called for Mabry to receive a 14-year sentence if at least four other defendants pleaded guilty to the same charge.

The agreement allows Mabry to serve the federal sentence while serving the remainder of a state sentence for drug trafficking.

According to court records, the Playboy Bloods operate mainly in a housing complex at H and Doolittle streets and are involved in racketeering acts such as murder, attempted murder, robbery and drug trafficking.

Mabry was once an "O.G." -- a leader known as an "original gangster" -- in the Playboy Bloods. According to his plea memorandum, he agreed with other Playboy Bloods members and associates to manufacture and distribute narcotics, primarily crack cocaine, and to operate drug houses within the gang's turf.

U.S. District Judge Robert Jones described Mabry as a career offender and said the sentence reflects that history.

Members of the Playboy Bloods have been linked to the 2004 slaying of 29-year-old security officer Brian Wilcox.

Contact reporter Carri Geer Thevenot at cgeer@reviewjournal.com or 702-384-8710.