Latest news with #HotBoyz
USA Today
04-04-2025
- Entertainment
- USA Today
A begrudging review of LiAngelo Ball's follow-up track to 'Tweaker'
A begrudging review of LiAngelo Ball's follow-up track to 'Tweaker' It's still taking a second for me to get used to talking about LiAngelo Ball, well, really at all, let alone talking about him as a rapper and not a basketball player. But he's done it, folks! He's made the transition. The dude has a hit single, a record deal and an album on the way. Gelo Ball is a full-fledged rap artist. On Friday, he debuted a new single called "Law N Order." This is a big moment for Gelo. It's one thing to nail a single. But it's another thing to nail your follow-ups. This isn't the first single that followed "Tweaker." He dropped "Can you Please" with GloRilla earlier this month. The reaction was solid, but it didn't quite land like "Tweaker" did. So where does Law N Order land? Probably in about the same space. The beat is fantastic. Shoutout to ThomasM, who produced this banger. Similar to Tweaker, it sounds like a modern take on something you'd hear the Hot Boyz rapping on in the late 1990s and early aughts. You can't help but give it a foot tap when you hear it. What's unfortunate about it is Gelo is kind of dragging the beat down. His flow? Not great. The cadence is weird. It's also a very monotonous song. The energy isn't quite there. It's certainly not matching the ferocity of the beat. It's also hard to hear what he's saying on the hook. It's almost like he's putting on his best Brian Kelly impression with a fake southern accent. It's just not really working for me. Maybe it's the beat itself. Maybe it's because I know he's a kid from Chino Hills and he doesn't really sound like that. Who's to say? Regardless, I just don't think this works that well. This beat deserves so much better. Ultimately, the beat probably saves this song. Put it on some speakers and it almost doesn't matter what Ball is saying or what he sounds like — the people will get it popping. In the end, that's probably what matters.
Boston Globe
28-01-2025
- Boston Globe
Over 90 break-ins. Millions in stolen jewels. How a burglary ring was finally brought down.
On the last Friday of March 2024 at around 8 p.m., an hour after the sun set, the gang did what Massachusetts prosecutors allege they'd done 92 times since 2018. They busted in and Advertisement Investigators say three of the four core members of the burglary gang were at the home in Sudbury that night, judging by cellphone data. One of them was Steven Berdugo, then 28, who arrest reports peg as small as 5 foot 2, making him a natural for tasks such as scurrying up ladders and squeezing through windows. Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Enter Email Sign Up Along with him were Jovan, then 29, and his brother Paul, 30. Like Berdugo, they grew up mostly in the run-down stretches of three-deckers and empty rubber and textile mills of Providence's West Side. And like Berdugo, they allegedly treated home burglaries as their job. Security and doorbell cameras from previous break-ins show the gang typically donned dark clothing, with ski masks to hide their faces. Long sleeves would have covered the tattoos on Berdugo's arms, including the one with the words 'Hot Boyz' — the name of a Providence street gang. Apparently missing that night was Paul Miller, then 46, the fourth accused member of the gang and the father of the Lemon brothers. He sometimes served as driver, according to documents filed in court. If the gang followed their usual MO that night in Sudbury, the driver would have dropped off the others, then driven around until it was time to pick them back up. The others often headed over to homes, extended a telescoping ladder, then climbed to a second-story window. Sometimes they used a short trench shovel to pry it open; other nights they simply smashed the glass with a rock. Advertisement Most, but not all, of the Lemon gang's alleged victims were Indian. A handful were described as being of South Asian or Asian descent, and at least one was Middle Eastern. But it seems the gang had the idea that members of the Greater Boston Indian community were prosperous and often kept cash, gold, and jewelry in their houses — and chose their targets accordingly. And mostly, they were right. In all, prosecutors allege the crew stole over For the victims, the string of burglaries was frustrating in its length, and chilling in the particular way their homes and privacy were violated. 'I'm scared now,' says Sukhi Randhawa, whose Pembroke home was robbed in September 2023, after she and her husband had left their house for a few hours. 'I mean, things happen in life, of course,' she says. 'But it changed my whole outlook.' L ess than a month after the break-in in Sudbury, Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan announced that the crew had been indicted in a sweeping home burglary case. All four members of the gang were arrested in Rhode Island last April, on unarmed burglary and other charges, and have been detained in the Middlesex Jail and House of Correction in Billerica as they await trial, currently scheduled for June. Their bails have been set between $500,000 and $1 million. Advertisement Through their lawyers, the four defendants — all of whom have pleaded not guilty to the charges against them — declined to be interviewed by the Globe or did not respond to interview requests. Ryan's office said it cannot discuss an ongoing case. This story is based on interviews, police reports, and an 87-page State Police affidavit filed in Middlesex County Superior Court. Clockwise from top left: Paul Miller, Jovan Lemon, Steven Berdugo, and Paul Lemon Affidavit And although questions remain, the available details depict a crew honing in on a specific community. Written over and over in the affidavit: 'The homeowners are of Indian descent.' As time went on, the operation allegedly grew more sophisticated, involving Over their six-year run, the thieves came close to being caught on multiple occasions. They were stopped several times near the scenes of break-ins, and members were even arrested after police questioning, only to later be let out on bail. All the while, the heists kept getting bigger. But so, too, did the trail of evidence prosecutors say they were leaving behind. T he spree started in June of 2018 with three robberies in Bellingham and one each in Franklin and Millis. Then, authorities say, the gang set its sights on the town of Sharon. The town has a vibrant Indian community, one big enough to support an Indian wedding planning business, an Indian spice boutique, and the cultural nonprofit Indian American Association of Sharon. When a home across the street from the spice store got robbed, the thieves made off with thousands of dollars' worth of jewels, including diamonds, pearls, and sapphires. Advertisement Just after 9 p.m. on a night that August, according to a police report, Sharon Detective Anthony Lucie spotted a Toyota minivan driving back and forth in the area around Forge Road and Firebrick Lane. Sharon police were already aware that they had a problem. Eight homes in town had been burgled that month alone — three of them on Forge Road. Just the night before, a home on a nearby street had been hit: Thieves had pried open a second-story window and stole thousands in gold and jewelry, including a ruby wedding ring valued at $8,000. When officers began to follow the minivan along a quiet road, the driver sped up to 50 miles per hour. They pulled the van over, identified the driver as Paul Miller, and asked what he was doing in the area. He at first didn't have much of an answer, then said he was looking for Gillette Stadium, which didn't seem credible —it was some 6 miles away. 'When asked again, Miller had no plausible explanation for being in this neighborhood,' according to the police report. It turned out Miller's license was suspended, and his criminal record included convictions for two gun offenses, as well as an escape from prison in Rhode Island. As Sharon police were taking him into custody for driving with the suspended license, officers noticed two Gatorade bottles in the cup receptacles in the back of the van. They were still cold to the touch. The officers suspected Miller was circling the neighborhood waiting for accomplices hitting another house — burglary can be thirsty work, and the drinks were there for when they returned. Advertisement Later, detectives would collect mobile phone records showing Berdugo was also in the area that night and had contacted Miller's phone over and over. Berdugo eventually made it back to Rhode Island on his own. Two Gatorades and a criminal record aren't enough for a burglary case, and Miller's girlfriend came and bailed him out. After that, the burglaries in Sharon stopped. But the thieves didn't give up altogether. Within days, they just moved on to another town: Walpole. D eepak Garg doesn't remember exactly when he started hearing about the break-ins at Indian Americans' homes. Garg is treasurer of the Garg, a loan officer and vice president at a suburban bank, says word of burglaries victimizing families of Indian descent bubbles up now and again. He recalls hearing of a similar crime wave about 20 years ago targeting suburban homes owned by white collar professionals with Indian names. Deepak Garg, treasurer of the India Association of Greater Boston, at his home. adam detour for the boston globe He doesn't consider it racism, per se, but recognizes a kind of ugly logic to crimes against the community. 'Racism is always there, of course,' Garg says. 'But it's true many Indians are professionals and do well.' It's also true that many families have gold. Necklaces, rings, and bracelets are traditional gifts, often family heirlooms passed from mother to daughter. 'We are very visible with jewelry,' a Eventually, authorities would also examine attendance sheets from local temples they said the gang used to figure out when members would be out of their homes. The burglars 'stole countless items of great monetary, emotional, and cultural value from families in multiple states,' State Police Lieutenant Colonel Mark Cyr would later explain, 'and did so by violating the sanctity of their homes.' W hen the burglars moved on to Walpole, in 2018, they did so in a big way. In one stretch, from August 30 to September 9, the gang allegedly broke into five homes. Once inside, the men typically didn't dally, according to investigation records. Art on the walls was of no interest. Nor typically were high-end computers, televisions, or other electronics. Instead, the burglars seemed entirely focused on the primary bedrooms — rifling through dresser drawers, lifting mattresses, dumping boxes from the closets. They often carried away what they found in pillowcases from the victims' own beds. If there was a safe, even if it weighed 400 pounds, they sometimes dropped it from the second floor window and hauled it to their vehicles. Back in Rhode Island they used grinding saws to slowly chew through the locks, according to prosecutors. Coordination often took place via text message and short phone calls. 'Pick me up if you on that 5,' Paul Lemon texted Berdugo ahead of one alleged break-in. 'On that 5' is shorthand for illicit work, done after any 9-to-5 job, say police. By the time the gang hit Walpole, the police had names. . Lucie Wimetz for the boston globe In addition to Miller, a police report from the time named his sons Jovan and Paul, and Steven Berdugo as suspects. It noted that criminal checks on the men revealed 'cautions' — a heads-up from other law enforcement agencies — that they had associations with the Hot Boys. 'This investigation involved several jurisdictions whose communities are suspected to have been victimized by the group,' wrote Ian Tolland, a Walpole detective. The list included police departments in Sharon, Bellingham, and Holliston, as well as in Cranston, Rhode Island. Tolland also took a step that would prove to be part of the gang's undoing. He sent a bulletin to the I n the years after the September 11 attacks, the newly formed Department of Homeland Security began helping fund 'fusion centers' in every state. They paired federal agents with local police and gave them technology to share intelligence, allowing them to see patterns that previously might have been missed. An unlicensed driver is given a ticket in some small town, say, but the car is registered to another man wanted in the theft of dangerous, explosive chemicals. A fusion center can help connect the dots. 'The small details, they mean everything to us,' says James Melberg, a Massachusetts state trooper who works in the center's Criminal Information Section. In addition to its role in homeland security, the center has become a 'Am I in there writing the code for this? No,' Melberg says. 'Everyone I work with is smarter than me. But I enjoy putting the pieces together.' In 2022 and 2023, the fusion center was also tracking a prolific crew working a different criminal racket: Because the case against the Lemon gang is still open, Melberg and Trooper Craig Anderson, the lead investigator on the case at the Middlesex DA's office, cannot discuss the details. But when the crew was eventually arrested, authorities would highlight the involvement of the fusion center, as well as coordination between several local police departments. B y the time homeowners in Westborough reported a suspicious person on their property in November 2019 — their Ring camera recorded a man in a mask peering in the window of their rear door — the burglars had allegedly already hit 20 homes that year alone. Westborough Deputy Police Chief Steve Tompkins, then a detective sergeant, says his department was aware of burglars in the area targeting Indian and Asian American families. He said they also had the names of the suspects, and evidence that they were from Rhode Island, information that by then was all over bulletins from the fusion center. On a Saturday night, the department got a call from the owner of a house in town about a break-in. The man wasn't home but a motion detector had activated his Ring camera, and the alert came to his phone. Footage from the camera shows a masked man wearing a black hoodie with a Nike logo on the chest. The house was in a subdivision right next to the town of Upton. Police there, responding to the Westborough burglary call, had stopped a car with Rhode Island plates. 'I thought, Jesus, this is the crew, ' Tompkins recalls. He sped to the scene. Berdugo and Jovan Lemon were in the car, with a driver not normally with the gang. Police would note that while the driver was wearing a sweatshirt, neither Berdugo nor Lemon was. Westborough officers got down to work, searching what looked to be a getaway route and finding masks, gloves, and two sweatshirts — including a black Nike hoodie. Despite the recent rain that had fallen, the sweatshirts were dry. After Tompkins ordered the trio's phones to be seized, authorities discovered a photo on Jovan's, taken the previous day, with him grinning boyishly at the camera. His hands were tucked in the pockets of a black Nike hoodie. . Lucie Wimetz for the boston globe There was no evidence the men had entered the house or stolen anything, however. At best, the police had attempted burglary charges. But all three had outstanding warrants from elsewhere, and Upton police arrested them. In time, all three eventually were released, but authorities were making connections. 'We knew there was a larger investigation, and we were very involved,' Tompkins says. Maybe at that point, after multiple close calls, the Lemons decided to lay low. Or maybe it was the arrival of the pandemic the next spring, which kept residents locked down, rarely leaving their homes. Whatever the reason, court documents allege the crew went quiet after that November 2019 night. They wouldn't be seen again for more than three years. I n January 2023, it happened again. Over $120,000 in cash and another $50,000 worth of jewelry were stolen from a Franklin home. The Lemon gang was back, prosecutors allege, and their takes were getting bigger. They got some $250,000 worth of jewelry from one home in Hopkinton in July; the same month, they stole more than $430,000 worth of jewelry, watches, clothes, and other items from a home in Lincoln. And the gang members weren't all keeping low profiles. In March of that year, Berdugo was stopped by Rhode Island State Police doing 89 miles per hour. The car wasn't registered to him and he was unlicensed. As he was being handcuffed, he bragged about his gang affiliation. 'Hot Boys, [expletive],' he spat at the troopers, according to the police affidavit. 'I hope you get shot, little [expletive]. And I hope you die.' In the summer of 2023, concern was rising in the Indian American community. In North Attleborough, where six homes had been robbed, Captain Jason Roy started talking to the local newspapers, warning that burglars were targeting families of Indian descent. In Sudbury, Chief Scott Nix started having private meetings with members of his town's growing Indian community, who wanted answers. 'Solving something like this takes tenacity and follow-through,' Nix says. 'It was evident early on these guys had some sophistication. Mostly with burglaries you see desperate people breaking into cars, going for whatever items and spare change. This definitely wasn't that.' In September, the Middlesex district attorney's office held a public meeting about the wave of burglaries in Sudbury. By then, it appears, the State Police attached to that office were working with the fusion center in earnest. Investigators were deep into the laborious process of building evidence: subpoenaing mobile carriers' location data for the suspects' phones; tracing car rental records; gathering ATM images of members of the crew depositing cash after robberies; talking to alleged accomplices and witnesses. They found at least one shop, in Cranston, Rhode Island, where they believe the gang sold stolen goods more than once. Still, the robberies continued into the spring of 2024. In late March, police say the suspects broke into a home in Boxborough and grabbed a safe from the owners' bedroom. The owner told police more than $50,000 in coins, diamonds, and gold was inside. Within days of that burglary, police say, the Lemon gang hit the big home in Sudbury when the owners were away on vacation. B y that Friday night in March 2024, word had gotten out about the burglary spree. A home on the same street had been broken into the previous July. And another in the neighborhood had been hit days before that, with a safe containing some $35,000 worth of gold jewelry stolen. Both of those homes, too, were owned by families of Indian descent. At the latest home, authorities say the gang followed their usual pattern, entering the house through a second-floor window. They went to the owners' bedroom and may have made off with some trinkets or cocktail jewelry, but nothing more, according to the residents (who asked not to be named to protect their privacy). The owners had also armed the home with a security system. At some point, the thieves must have realized they had tripped the alarm; by the time the police arrived, they were gone. Some evidence gathered in the investigation into house break-ins targeting Indian Americans in suburbs around Boston. Middlesex District Attorney Later, detectives would be able to re-create their escape. The GPS in their rented getaway car and the chips in their phones pinged cellphone towers stretching from Sudbury to the West Side of Providence as they passed, leaving a record of the date, the time, their location. A few days later, surveillance cameras caught Berdugo and the Lemon brothers walking into the New England Coin Exchange, a modest storefront in Cranston, Rhode Island, that buys and sells rare coins, as well as gold, jewelry, and gems. Jovan could be seen carrying a dark bag that appeared to be 'weighted by contents the size of a softball,' according to prosecutors. It wasn't the first time the shop had been on the radar of authorities, according to documents filed in court. The previous summer, the owner bought a diamond that he ultimately found to be suspicious, from a customer he told investigators appeared to be Middle Eastern. He contacted the The stone came back as reported stolen, from an owner who lived in Lincoln. The GIA notified the local police, who knew the family had been robbed earlier that summer. When the Globe asked about the 2024 visit from the Lemon brothers, the shop's owner said he was not able to speak about the case. But documents show that about an hour after walking into the store on that April afternoon, Berdugo and the Lemon brothers were caught on camera leaving, prosecutors say. The bag Jovan had been carrying now appeared empty. I n the early hours of April 26, about a month later, troopers from the Rhode Island State Police, supported by the Massachusetts State Police and US Marshals Service, arrested Jovan Lemon, Paul Lemon, and Steven Berdugo at their homes. Paul Miller was arrested outside an apartment in Providence. All were taken in without incident. At Jovan Lemon's apartment, according to prosecutors, they found over 100 pieces of gold, jewelry, and watches, and a large amount of Indian currency. They also seized a telescoping ladder and short-handled shovel, a magnetic GPS unit, and a grinder saw investigators suspect was used to cut open stolen safes. There was more of the same at Paul Lemon's home, as well as personal effects belonging to victims. Later that day, Flanking Ryan was Daniel Tucker, director of the Commonwealth Fusion Center, as well as representatives from police departments in Carlisle, Holliston, Hopkinton, Lincoln, Sudbury, and Weston. State Police Lieutenant Colonel Mark Cyr speaks at the podium during an April 2024 press conference announcing the arrests of Jovan and Paul Lemon, Paul Miller, and Steven Berdugo. To his left is Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan. from Massachusetts State Police Dozens of other Massachusetts communities hit by the burglary spree were highlighted in a map projected onto a screen behind Ryan. So too were photos of physical evidence seized during the investigation: a shovel, a ladder, a black sweatshirt, piles of jewelry and cash. During the press conference, Ryan added that neighbors who lived near break-in sites experienced disruptions to their internet service, leading authorities to believe the thieves were using Wi-Fi jammers. At the podium, Ryan spoke to the emotional impact of the crime spree. 'Someone has been in your space, they've been touching your things, and sometimes they've taken your possessions,' she said. 'If you add to that having knowledge, or at least a suspicion, that your home was targeted not just to gain property, but it was targeted because of who you are, because of your ethnic heritage, I think that gives you some idea of the sense of trauma inflicted.' R yan was right. The creepy feeling that one was being watched, and then violated, is what sticks with a lot of the victims. 'We didn't tell our kids until a year ago,' says one man whose house was robbed in 2018. 'They just would have been so scared.' He says the thieves took $13,000 in cash — the family was saving for a big vacation — along with thousands of dollars worth of gold chains, watches, and other valuables. After the suspected burglars were arrested in that traffic stop in Upton, and their phones were seized, detectives uncovered internet searches Jovan Lemon had conducted. The investigation showed that he had visited a message board that connects Indian families with services of handymen and baby sitters. A day before the Upton arrests, Jovan Lemon also read a news story on the website of the Worcester Telegram & Gazette, a positive piece about the Indian community in Central Massachusetts finding belonging and community — trust that the burglars allegedly violated. There may have been a secret formula for their target selection and timing. Then again, it all may be as basic as what Jovan asked Google on his phone that same morning. He typed: 'rich Indian community in Massachusetts.' John Doherty has written for The Providence Journal, New Bedford Standard-Times, The Boston Globe, and other publications. He lives in Providence. Send comments to magazine@
