Following an eight-day jury trial, a federal jury convicted two defendants of all charged counts for their involvement in the Highs Street gang, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Joseph H. Thompson.
Defendants Cortez Davon Blakemore, 35, and Robert Lesure, 23, were convicted by a jury of federal RICO conspiracy and conspiracy to distribute controlled substances. A sentencing hearing will be set at a later date.
According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Blakemore and Lesure were long-standing and prolific drug traffickers for the Highs criminal street gang.
They sold fentanyl at the intersection of Broadway and Lyndale in North Minneapolis, which the Highs had taken control of and turned into an open-air drug market.
As the jury heard at trial, the Highs is a violent criminal street gang that has long wreaked havoc on North Minneapolis, selling fentanyl and other deadly drugs and enforcing its territory through violence, kidnapping, and murder, including the murders of innocent civilians caught in the crossfire.
Forty members of the Highs gang were charged in this large RICO indictment. Blakemore and Lesure are the 37th and 38th defendants to be convicted in this case. A final RICO defendant is set to be tried in 2026.
“These convictions bring justice not just to the victims of the Highs gang, but to an entire community that has endured years of violence, fear, and loss,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Joseph H. Thompson. “For too long, this gang terrorised Minneapolis, maintaining control through chaos.”
“This isn’t just another trial; it’s a continuation of our full-court press to dismantle the Highs street gang and hold every last member accountable,” said Travis Riddle, ATF Special Agent in Charge of the St. Paul Field Division. “We’re proud to stand alongside our prosecution and investigative partners who’ve shown unmatched determination, trial after trial, to bring justice to the communities harmed by this violence.”
