June 29, 2009
Media Contact: Jenn Meale
Phone: (850) 245-0150
Two Third Shift Gang Members Sentenced to Prison
TALLAHASSEE, FL—Attorney General Bill McCollum today announced two Manatee County gang members pled guilty to criminal charges of racketeering and conspiracy to commit racketeering. . Members of the Manatee County criminal Third Shift gang are being prosecuted for their criminal activities by the Attorney General’s Office of Statewide Prosecution.
Emmanuel Meranvil, 23, will serve a 15-year prison sentence, followed by four years probation. Theophille Telfort, 22, will serve a 12-year prison sentence, followed by three years probation. Both men resided in Bradenton.
The Third Shift gang is a violent criminal organization that controls the drug trade in Manatee County. Other criminal activities tied to the gang include weapons charges and resisting arrest. Both men were arrested in May 2008 by the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office with assistance from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.