Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that Uda Hidalgo, 31, of Buffalo, pleaded guilty to racketeering conspiracy before U.S. District Judge Richard J. Arcara. The charge carries a maximum penalty of life in prison and a $250,000 fine. Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph M. Tripi, who is handling the case, stated that between 2000 and 2012, Hildalgo was a member of the Cheko’s Crew/7th Street Gang which was responsible for drug trafficking and violent crime on Buffalo’s West Side. During this time, as a part of the rivalry with the 10th Street Gang, the defendant participated with others in the murder of 10th Street Gang associate Eric Morrow. Hildalgo provided one of the firearms used by other gang members to shoot and kill Morrow on August 11, 2009. The defendant also sold illegal narcotics on Buffalo’s West Side. The please is the culmination of an investigation on the part of Special Agents of the FBI, New York State Police, under the direction of Major Michael Cerretto, the Buffalo Police Department, under the direction of Commissioner Daniel Derenda and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge James S. Higgins, New York Field Division. Sentencing is scheduled for May 26, 2015 at 12:30 p.m. before Judge Arcara.