Philadelphia Man Sentenced To Life In Prison For Deadly Firebombing Of Federal Witness's Family

 

The U.S. Justice Department released the below information:

A Philadelphia man was sentenced today to life in prison for his role in the Oct. 9, 2004, retaliatory firebombing that killed six members of a federal witness’s family, including four children.

Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Zane David Memeger of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania and Special Agent in Charge Edward J. Hanko of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division made the announcement.  U.S. District Judge R. Barclay Surrick imposed the sentence.

Robert Merritt, 34, was convicted following a jury trial on May 13, 2013, of conspiracy to participate in a racketeering enterprise and the murders of the family members of a federal witness, Eugene Coleman.

At the direction of convicted drug kingpin Kaboni Savage, Merritt and his cousin, Lamont Lewis, participated in the firebombing of the Coleman family home in retaliation for Coleman’s testimony against Savage.  Evidence introduced at trial showed that Merritt threw a gas can with a lit cloth fuse, and then a second gas can, into the occupied Philadelphia row house in the predawn hours of Oct. 9, 2004.  Six people, including four children ranging in age from 15 months to 15 years, were killed in the ensuing fire.

Co-defendants Kaboni Savage and Kadida Savage were also convicted at the May 2013 trial of the firebombing.  Kaboni Savage was sentenced to death for 12 counts of murder in aid of racketeering.  Kidada Savage was sentenced to life in prison.  Lamont Lewis, who pleaded guilty before trial, is awaiting sentencing.

The case was investigated by the FBI, the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigations, the Philadelphia Police Department, the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office, and the Maple Shade, New Jersey, Police Department.  The United States Bureau of Prisons, the United States Marshals Service, and the Philadelphia / Camden High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Task Force also assisted in the investigation.

The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Steve Mellin of the Criminal Division’s Capital Case Section and Assistant U.S. Attorneys David E. Troyer and John M. Gallagher of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.   

Note: You can also read an earlier Justice Department release on Kaboni Savage via the below link:

http://www.pauldavisoncrime.com/2013/06/north-philadelphia-drug-kingpin.html

Philadelphia Woman Sentenced for Her Role in Deadly Firebombings

The U.S. Justice Department released the below information today:

Kidada Savage, 31, of Philadelphia, was sentenced today to life in prison for her role in the Oct. 9, 2004, firebombing that killed six members of a federal witness’s family. Savage is the sister of Kaboni Savage, who ordered the firebombing and who was sentenced to death for 12 counts of murder in aid of racketeering.

Acting Assistant Attorney General Mythili Raman for the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, United States Attorney Zane David Memeger of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania and Special Agent in Charge Edward J. Hanko of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division made the announcement.

Kidada Savage was convicted on May 13, 2013, of six counts of murder in aid of racketeering, all related to the firebombing of Eugene Coleman’s family home.   Coleman was a federal witness at the time.   Six people, including four children, were killed in the arson.   Kaboni and Kidada Savage were also convicted of conspiracy to commit murder in aid of racketeering, retaliating against a witness by murder and using fire to commit a felony.

Kidada Savage acted as a go-between for her brother, who was in federal custody awaiting a drug trial, and Lamont Lewis, who committed the firebombing.   Lewis pleaded guilty and is awaiting sentencing.   Robert Merritt and Steven Northington were also convicted in the case.  Northington was sentenced to life; Merritt is awaiting sentencing.

The case was investigated by the FBI, the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation Division, the Philadelphia Police Department, the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office and the Maple Shade Police Department in New Jersey.   The United States Bureau of Prisons, United States Marshals Service and the Philadelphia / Camden High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Task Force also assisted in the investigation.

The case was prosecuted by Trial Attorney Steve Mellin of the Criminal Division’s Capital Case Section and Assistant U.S. Attorneys David E. Troyer and John M. Gallagher.

You can also read an earlier post on Kaboni Savage:

http://www.pauldavisoncrime.com/2013/06/north-philadelphia-drug-kingpin.html

Drugs, Guns And Tapes In The Kaboni Savage Philadelphia Drug Kingpin Trial

Veteran organized crime reporter George Anastasia is covering the Kaboni Savage drug kingpin trial in Philadelphia for Bigtrial.net.

Drugs, guns and tapes....lots of tapes.

That's been the story thus far in the racketeering-murder trial of North Philadelphia drug kingpin Kaboni Savage and three co-defendants.

The trial resumed this morning as it had ended last week with FBI Agent Kevin Lewis on the witness stand. Lewis and his partner, Philadelphia Police Detective Tom Zielinski, have spearheaded the Savage investigation for more than a decade. They are two of the principal players in a bloody drama that prosecutors began presenting to a jury in U.S. District Court last week.

Savage and two of his co-defendants face possible death sentences if convicted. The case lists 12 murders, including the October 2004 firebombing of a North Sixth Street rowhouse in which two women and four children were killed.
In many ways the trial offers a look at the volatile and violent drug underworld, a world where alliances constantly shift, where treachery is common place and where money and guns are in abundance.

You can read the rest of the piece via the below link:

http://www.bigtrial.net/2013/02/a-tale-of-tapesand-much-more.html#more