BALTIMORE, Md. - The Department of Justice (DOJ) says that 39-year-old Andre Ricardo Briscoe, AKA "Poo" from Baltimore and Cambridge, has been sentenced to life in federal prison for federal drug distribution charges, use of a firearm to commit murder in relation to drug trafficking crimes, killing a witness to prevent communication with law enforcement and being a felon in possession of firearm and ammunition. The DOJ says that Briscoe was convicted on June 8th, 2022, after 12-day jury trial.
According to facts proven at the trial, from March through October 2015, Briscoe distributed heroin. They say on May 25th, 2015, Briscoe went from his home in Cambridge to the home of his romantically-involved co-defendant Kiara Haynes, and told her that he planned to steal heroin from Jennifer Jeffrey, a long-time friend of Haynes.
The DOJ says that testimony proved that Briscoe planned to rob and kill Ms. Jefferey, with Haynes replying that she would help him get a gun. They say Haynes contacted a relative who had a gun, but was in jail at the time. The DOJ says that this call to the relative was recorded by the prison, where she promised to give the inmate the gun back along with 30 grams of the stolen heroin. They say the inmate agreed to the proposition. After the call, the DOJ says Haynes and Briscoe met with the inmate's brother, who gave Haynes a .45 caliber gun.
That night, the DOJ says that Briscoe left the apartment went to visit Jeffrey at her nearby home. Testimony revealed that Jeffrey showed Briscoe a large amount of heroin, and also told him that her child did not feel well and did not go to school that day.
Later, they say Haynes overheard Briscoe on the phone with Jeffrey, who was talking about making breakfast for Briscoe, which is when Briscoe took the gun from Haynes's bedroom and told her that he was going to Jeffrey's to get the drugs.
The DOJ says that Briscoe carried out his plan, robbing the woman of at least 80 grams of drugs and murdered Jeffrey, shooting her in the wrist, shoulder, chest, and back of the head. They say he then killed Jeffrey's child while he was in bed, shooting him multiple times in the head.
Afterwards, the DOJ says that Briscoe went back to Haynes' apartment and told her that Jennifer Jeffrey and her child were dead, giving Haynes a bag of heroin as her "cut". According to the DOJ, as detailed in Haynes’s plea agreement, she returned the gun to the inmate’s brother along with the heroin given to her by Briscoe, as payment for the use of the gun.
The next day, the DOJ says the Baltimore Police Department discovered Jeffrey and her child dead in their home.
38-year-old Haynes was sentenced to 25 years in federal prison for the following crimes:
- Two counts of aiding and abetting the use and discharge of a firearm in relation to a drug trafficking crime
- Crime of violence, causing the death of Jennifer Jeffrey and her seven-year-old child
The DOJ says that the case was made possible by investigative leads generated from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives’ (ATF) National Integrated Ballistic Information Network (NIBIN).
According to the DOJ, this case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make their neighborhoods safer for everyone. They say the department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended ATF, the FBI, the Baltimore Police Department, and the Cambridge Police Department for their work in the investigation. Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul E. Budlow, who prosecuted the case and thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael C. Hanlon and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Sandra Wilkinson for their assistance.
