Aspiring lawyer part of biggest gang bust in NYC history
BY JASON COHEN
Kraig Lewis grew up in the
rough area of Gun Hill and
was a force on the basketball
court and got A’s in school.
He made it out of the
Bronx and was prepared to go
law school until everything
changed in 2016. It was then at
age 24 where he was part of the
largest gang bust in city history.
In total, the feds arrested
120 people.
Lewis was not a criminal,
yet that day law enforcement
turned his world upside
down. He spent 22 months
awaiting trial on trumped up
charges and eventually his
case was tossed.
“We weren’t 120 gang members,”
he told the Bronx Times.
“It was a community raid, not
a gang raid. If I had blue eyes
and blonde hair they would
have said don’t touch that kid.”
Lewis, 29, was raised in the
Eastchester Gardens section
of Gun Hill. His parents Sheryl
and Al split up when he was 5
and he lived in Florida with
his dad for a few years.
Relocating to the Sunshine
State was like a breath of fresh
air, he recalled.
He returned in fourth
grade and with his mom working
long hours as a nurse,
Lewis became quite independent.
As a child he figured out
how to sign himself up for football
and get to practice on his
own.
“From a young age whatever
I wanted to do I was going
to go out there and do it,” he explained
According to Lewis, getting
a good education and feeling
safe was imperative. So, he left
the community and went to
middle and high school at Mt.
St. Michael Academy.
He played multiple sports
there and did well in the classroom.
Lewis stressed that the
school may have kept him alive.
“If I wasn’t in that school I
would have been dead,” he explained.
He graduated and went to
the University of Bridgeport
in Connecticut for criminal
justice and had dreams of being
a lawyer.
Lewis loved college. He
hosted parties, began his rap
career, launched a clothing
line and did well in school.
In fact, he was one of his only
friends leave the borough.
“It literally opened my
mind to who I became today,”
he stated.
BRONX TIMES REPORTER,28 MAY 14-20, 2021 BTR
With a passion for education,
he stayed at Bridgeport
and decided to obtain his master’s
in business. Things were
going well; he had a girlfriend,
a son, an apartment and was
well known in the community.
But one day he was in the
process of planning an antiviolence
event when suddenly
the police banged on his door.
Completely caught off
guard, Lewis had no clue why
they were there and hoped he
would be back the next day for
his finals — but he was wrong.
“It was the worst thing
you could ever imagine,” he
stressed. “One hundred cops,
boom, boom, I’m screaming
at them I’m educated, I didn’t
do anything wrong. I’m not
a felon. I didn’t commit any
crimes.”
When he saw the warrant
he was shaken. It claimed he
was involved in racketeering,
guns, selling drugs and more.
That could be the furthest
from the truth.
Lewis was transported to
federal lockup in downtown
Manhattan and it was there
where he realized what was
going on. He began to see all of
his old friends behind bars.
Essentially the feds
brought a Racketeer Influenced
and Corrupt Organizations
(RICO) case on all of
the alleged members of the YG
gang and claimed Lewis was
part of it.
“I’m like how the f@ck
could this happen,” he said.
“They charge you with all
these charges to make you
look like a menace to society.”
The authorities alleged
Lewis shot people and sold
pounds of marijuana, both of
which were false. After paying
lawyers thousands of dollars,
Lewis eventually agreed
to a plea deal of five years even
though he was innocent.
However, this was not and
open and shut case. He spent
22 months in prison as he
awaited his trial.
Those first four months inside
were depressing and the
toughest of his life.
“I shouldn’t have went to
jail,” he said emotionally.
After spending nearly two
years locked up, his case was
eventually thrown out by
Trump prosecutors that had replaced
the previous ones from
the Obama Administration.
Lewis was finally released
in 2018 and granted two years
probation. But the scars of
what the justice system did
will never go away.
He began speaking at
schools about his experience
and a year later, joined the
nonprofit violence prevention
group Release the Grip (RTG).
According to Lewis, it is his
goal to help children know
there are other ways to succeed
besides using a gun or doing
illegal things.
As the community coordinator,
he meets with families
and hopes to make a difference.
“I see those kids and I see
my friends,” he explained.
“My dream is job is to work for
a record label.”
Kraig Lewis Photo by Jason Cohen
FAMILY COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK
COUNTY OF THE BRONX
DOCKET #NA-11275-8/20
SUMMONS
In the Matter of
THE QUILES/ MUNIZ CHILDREN
Children Under Eighteen Years
Alleged to be Abused and Neglected by Respondent(s).
JOSE QUILES MIGDALIA QUILES
NOTICE: PLACEMENT OF YOUR CHILD IN FOSTER CARE MAY RESULT STANZAIN YOUR
LOSS OF YOUR RIGHTS TO YOUR CHILD. IF YOUR CHILD STAYS IN FOSTER CARE FOR 15
OF THE MOST RECENT 22 MONTHS, THE AGENCY MAY BE REQUIRED BY LAW TO FILE A
PETITION TO TERMINATE YOUR PARENTAL RIGHTS AND TO COMMIT GUARDIANSHIP AND
CUSTODY OF YOUR CHILD TO THE AGENCY FOR THE PURPOSES OF ADOPTION. IN SOME
CASES, THE AGENCY MAY FILE BEFORE THE END OF THE 15-MONTH PERIOD. IF SEVERE
OR REPEATED CHILD ABUSE IS PROVEN BY CLEAR AND CONVINCING EVIDENCE, THIS
FINDING MAY CONSTITUTE THE BASIS TO TERMINATE YOUR PARENTAL RIGHTS AND TO
COMMIT GUARDIANSHIP AND CUSTODY OF YOUR CHILD TO THE AGENCY FOR THE
PURPOSES OF ADOPTION.
TO: JOSE QUILES
A petition under ARTICLE 10 of the FAMILY COURT ACT having been filed with this court alleging
that the above-named child(ren) is a neglected child(ren), a copy of said petition being annexed
hereto:
YOU ARE HEREBY SUMMONED to VIRTUAL INTAKE PART B, MICROSOFT TEAMS LINK
https://notify.nycourts.gov/meet/agqm7n, or CALL IN NUMBER 1-347-378-4143, CONFERENCE
ID 786 622 481, ON MAY 19, 2021 AT 10:30AM, to answer the petition and to show cause why
said children should not be adjudicated to be a neglected and/ or abused children and why you
should not be dealt with in accordance with the provisions of ARTICLE 10 of the FAMILY COURT
ACT and why an order of support under Section 235 of the FAMILY COURT ACT should not be
made if the final disposition is an order of placement.
On your failure to appear as herein directed, a warrant may be issued for your arrest.
F
URTHER NOTICE: Family Court Act §154(c) provides that petitions brought pursuant to Articles
4,5,6,8 and 10 of the Family Court Act, in which an order of protection is sought or in which a violation
of an order of protection is alleged, may be served outside the State of New York upon a Respondent
who is not a resident or domiciliary of the State of New York. If no other grounds for obtaining
personal jurisdiction over the Respondent exist aside from the application of this provision, the
exercise of personal jurisdiction over the respondent is limited to the issue of the request for, or
alleged violation of, the order of protection. Where the Respondent has been served with this
summons and petition and does not appear, the Family Court may proceed to a hearing with respect
to issuance or enforcement of the order of protection.
SHAYNA WEINBERG-GORDON, ESQ.
D
ated: APRIL 13, 2021
/agqm7n