CROWN HEIGHTS – A MEMBER OF THE 5-9 Brims gang on Tuesday in Brooklyn federal court pleaded guilty to participating in a deadly mass shooting at a Crown Heights hookah bar, Joseph Nocella Jr., U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York announced.
Timothy Spence, 21, waived indictment and pleaded guilty to assault in-aid-of racketeering and discharging a firearm during a crime of violence. He faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years and up to life in prison.
In the early morning hours of Aug. 17, 2025, Spence was at the Taste of the City Lounge in Crown Heights with other members and associates of the 5-9 Brims, who are a subset of the Bloods gang. Also present were associates of the Folk Nation Gangster Disciples gang, a rival of the 5-9 Brims. At around 3 a.m., tensions boiled over and the Brims began shooting at the Disciples, who returned fire.
Spence, who was armed, shot towards the opposing side. Within around six seconds, over 40 shots were discharged into the crowded bar, killing three people and injuring 10 more, authorities said. The three deaths included two of the shooters, and delivery driver Amadou Diallo, 27, who was outside the lounge and struck by crossfire.
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