NEWARK, N.J. – Three Hudson County, New Jersey, men were charged by complaint with narcotics and firearms related violations, U.S. Attorney Philip Sellinger announced today.
Shiquwan Johnson, aka “Big Shy,” 37, is charged with unlawful possession of firearms and ammunition by a convicted felon, possession with intent to distribute heroin and cocaine, and possession of firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. Johnson is associated with a neighborhood street gang that operates around the Bergen Avenue/Lexington Avenue area in Jersey City.
Douglas Sherman, aka “Dougie,” 40, is charged with maintaining a drug-involved premises.
Perry Capers, aka “Diddy,” 36, is charged with possession with intent to distribute heroin and cocaine. Capers is also associated with the neighborhood street gang that operates in and around Bergen Avenue and Lexington Avenue in Jersey City.
All three defendants appeared on Feb. 16, 2023, before U.S. Magistrate Judge Jessica S. Allen. Johnson and Sherman consented to detention and Capers was released and placed on home incarceration.
According to the documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
Law enforcement officers began investigating an apartment building in January 2023 and observed numerous hand-to-hand drug transactions on a near-daily basis. The investigation revealed multiple stash locations for narcotics and firearms in the building, including inside an apartment unit rented by Sherman, a pipe, and a mailbox associated with the apartment unit rented by Sherman. While executing search warrants on Feb. 15, 2023, law enforcement officers recovered hundreds of grams of suspected cocaine and tens of grams of suspected heroin, three firearms, and additional ammunition.
Johnson faces a mandatory minimum penalty of five years in prison and a maximum penalty of life in prison. Sherman and Capers face a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison.
U.S. Attorney Sellinger credited investigators the Jersey City Police Department, under the direction of Director James Shea, with the investigation leading to the charges. He also thanked special agents of the Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Ricky J. Patel in Newark; the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Prosecutor Esther Suarez; special agents of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Bryan Miller; and special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge James E. Dennehy, for their assistance.
This investigation was conducted as part of the Jersey City Violent Crime Initiative (VCI). The VCI was formed in 2018 by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey, the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office, and the Jersey City Police Department, for the sole purpose of combatting violent crime in and around Jersey City. As part of this partnership, federal, state, county, and city agencies collaborate to strategize and prioritize the prosecution of violent offenders who endanger the safety of the community. The VCI is composed of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the FBI, the ATF, the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) New Jersey Division, the U.S. Marshals, the Jersey City Police Department, the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office, the Hudson County Sheriff’s Office, New Jersey State Parole, the Hudson County Jail, and the New Jersey State Police Regional Operations and Intelligence Center/Real Time Crime Center.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Clara Kim of the Office’s OCDETF/Narcotics Unit.
The charges and allegations contained in the complaint are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
