Date: Dec. 16, 2024 Contact: newsroom@ci.irs.gov WASHINGTON — Angel Enrique Suncar and Tristan Miles Ware both of Washington, D.C. and members of the violent Kennedy Street Crew (KDY), were sentenced today for their roles in a massive drug trafficking organization that operated open air markets in Northwest Washington, D.C. Suncar, a twice-convicted felon who sold marijuana and cocaine base and also possessed firearms to facilitate the crew’s drug trafficking activities, was sentenced to 60 months in federal prison. Suncar, aka “Coqui,” pleaded guilty on June 12, 2024, to possessing a firearm during a drug trafficking crime. In addition to the prison term, U.S. District Judge Beryl A. Howell ordered Suncar to serve five years of supervised release. Ware, aka “Greedy,” pleaded guilty July 11, 2024, to conspiracy to distribute 100 kilograms or more of marijuana and to possession of a firearm during a drug trafficking offense. Judge Howell sentenced Ware to 120 months in prison and also ordered him to serve five years of supervised release. The sentences were announced by U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves, and Special Agent in Charge Kareem Carter, of the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) Washington D.C. Field Office, FBI Acting Special Agent in Charge David Geist of the Washington Field Office Criminal and Cyber Division, DEA Special Agent in Charge Jarod Forget of the Washington Division, and ATF Special Agent in Charge Anthony Spotswood of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives - Washington Division,. According to court documents, KDY members operated open-air drug markets on an 11-block stretch of Kennedy Street in Northwest Washington, D.C., as well as surrounding streets. Like many drug trafficking organizations (DTOs), KDY armed itself with fire power to facilitate the drug trade and defend its territory from rival crews. Suncar was a regular presence in the open-air drug market that KDY controlled. Law enforcement collected evidence of his trafficking at or near his residence on the 1200 block of Kennedy Street, NW. Suncar’s role as a trafficker for the KDY crew was further borne out by law enforcement’s recovery of narcotics, cash, and two firearms at his residence on June 27, 2023. On that date, law enforcement searched his residence as part of a coordinated arrest operation conducted at locations in Northern Virginia, Maryland, and the District of Columbia. At Suncar’s residence, law enforcement discovered the hallmarks of a drug trafficker who manufactures his own supply: multiple baggies of crack cocaine, multiple Pyrex dishes containing powered residue, digital scales, two firearms, additional ammunition, and approximately $1,410 in cash. Ware was apprehended on June 26, 2023, at a residence on the 1300 block of 5th Street NW, along with two co-defendants. At the residence, law enforcement recovered 3.5 kilos of marijuana, approximately $2,710 in cash, and six firearms. One of the firearms was a Glock 23 handgun which was swabbed for DNA and matched that of Ware’s. Months prior to the arrest, on January 26, 2023, law enforcement encountered Ware at a home on the 1700 block of D Street, NE, with several KDY members suspected of smuggling marijuana from California to the DMV via commercial flights. Agents recovered ten firearms, assorted ammunition, 21 kilos of marijuana packed in suitcases, and 40 grams of fentanyl-laced pills at the home. This investigation was conducted under the auspices of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks. This case was investigated by the Metropolitan Police Department, the DEA’s Washington Division, ATF’s Washington Field Division, with assistance from IRS Criminal Investigation Washington, D.C. Office and FBI’s Washington Field Office. The matter is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Matthew W. Kinskey and Sitara Witanachchi, of the of the Violence Reduction and Trafficking Offenses Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia. IRS-CI is the criminal investigative arm of the IRS, responsible for conducting financial crime investigations, including tax fraud, narcotics trafficking, money-laundering, public corruption, healthcare fraud, identity theft and more. IRS-CI special agents are the only federal law enforcement agents with investigative jurisdiction over violations of the Internal Revenue Code, obtaining a more than a 90 percent federal conviction rate. The agency has 20 field offices located across the U.S. and 12 attaché posts abroad.
