For years, investigators say violence quietly spread through parts of Riverhead, spilling into nearby communities and leaving behind shootings, robberies, and two deadly killings.
Now, prosecutors say they’ve unraveled it.
Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond Tierney announced a sweeping 57-count indictment charging 18 alleged members and associates of a Riverhead-based group known as the “48 Gang,” accused of carrying out a string of violent crimes across Suffolk and beyond between 2021 and 2025.
According to authorities, the group operated out of areas many locals recognize, including Oakland Drive, Doctors Path Apartments, and River Pointe Apartments along East Main Street.
What started as neighborhood disputes, prosecutors say, escalated into something far more dangerous.
Investigators allege the group used violence to establish control, carrying out shootings, armed robberies, and gun trafficking while sharing weapons among members.
The case ties together multiple incidents across Long Island:
In June 2021, shots were fired into an Aquebogue home where a 74-year-old woman and 76-year-old man were inside. They survived, but bullets tore through the living room and bedroom.
Months later, in October 2021, prosecutors say an 18-year-old from Mastic Beach, Marcel Arrington, was lured under the pretense of a marijuana sale on Bayview Avenue. Instead, he was robbed and fatally shot.
Ballistics later linked the same weapon used in that killing to the earlier Aquebogue shooting, a key break that helped investigators connect the crimes.
The violence didn’t stop there.
In September 2022, gunfire erupted on Taylor Avenue in Bellport as alleged gang members targeted rivals.
Then, in January 2023, a fight in a parking lot along East Main Street in Riverhead turned deadly. Prosecutors say James Ayers was followed down the street and shot in the head after a confrontation.
Authorities also detailed a series of armed robberies, including two 7-Eleven stores hit within an hour in Central Islip and North Bellmore, and a brutal daytime robbery at a Flanders deli where a clerk was pistol-whipped.
But one of the most shocking allegations involves someone sworn to uphold the law.
Prosecutors say Kyren Braunskill, now a detective with the Mount Vernon Police Department, is accused of conspiring with gang members to supply illegal firearms while he was still working as a 911 operator and after becoming an officer.
Investigators allege he attempted to arrange gun sales, participated in financial fraud, and even sought help from gang members to carry out a shooting.
Authorities say the case was built over several years through coordinated work between local police, federal agencies, and Suffolk County’s Gang Violence Task Force, ultimately presenting months of evidence to a grand jury.
In total, prosecutors say they seized more than a dozen illegal weapons tied to the group, many allegedly used in shootings and robberies across the region.
“This case highlights the violent acts of a few who brought fear to entire communities,” law enforcement officials said, emphasizing that the investigation aimed to dismantle a network responsible for repeated violence.
Many of the defendants are already in custody, with court proceedings scheduled in the coming weeks.
As the case moves forward, prosecutors say it represents one of the most significant efforts in recent years to break apart a violent street gang operating in Suffolk County.
All defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
