Gang Leader, Violent Montco Armed Robber, Sentenced To Life: DOJ
The boss of a ruthless organization which committed numerous local kidnappings, torture, and home invasions in an attempt to expand their power will spend the rest of his life in prison.
Khalil Smith, 35, of Philadelphia, was sentenced in federal court on Monday to 207 years behind bars.
Over a period of about 20 months, from Oct. 2012 to April 2014, Smith was the leader of a 20-person syndicate that brutalized southeastern Pennsylvania and southern New Jersey, including armed home invasion robberies in both Whitpain and Hatfield, the U.S. Attorney's Office said.
During the lengthy spree, the group stole drugs, money, and jewelry from homes, kidnapped victims whom they had extensively surveilled and then demanded ransom, used police scanners to avoid capture, and even dressed as police during crimes to confuse victims. Some victims were shot, beaten, or tied up; others were tortured more viciously through waterboarding and pouring boiling water on their genitals.
The incident in Ambler occurred on Sept. 2, 2012, according to authorities. Smith and several other men armed with guns broke into a home on the 300 block of Railroad Avenue. They encountered four men inside; all of them were tied up and laid facedown on the ground, the criminal indictment states. The group stole jewelry, nearly $2,000 in cash, a quarter ounce of cocaine, and Percocet pills.
They returned to Montgomery County again on Nov. 7, 2017, when they identified a victim they wanted to rob. They placed a GPS tracking device on the victim's car and followed him to his home on the 1400 block of Leas Way in Hatfield, the indictment states. They attacked him, subdued him, and then stole numerous items, including multiple TVs, firearms, a laptop, cell phones, $600 in cash, and finally, a BMW, according to the indictment.
Smith's gang orchestrated similar incidents in Philadelphia and Cherry Hill, New Jersey due to Smith's "desire for drugs, money, and power," said William McSwain, the U.S. Attorney in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. Many of their victims were drug dealers.
Smith was originally found guilty in Jan. 2017. All 19 of his co-conspirators have been convicted as well.
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