The state Attorney General’s Gang Prosecution Unit has convicted 16 members of the 1-8 Trey Gangster Bloods in Barrow County following a large-scale investigation into violent crimes, drug trafficking, and gang recruitment as directed from inside and outside of prison.
Among those convicted was Jamar Ramsay, the statewide leader of 1-8 Trey who is currently serving a life sentence at Hays State Prison in Georgia for a previous murder charge. While incarcerated, Ramsay directed other defendants to engage in criminal activity to further the 1-8 Trey enterprise. Ramsay, along with other defendants, also engaged in electronic communication regarding the recruitment of children into the gang and the packaging, shipping, sale, and distribution of controlled substances, cell phones, and other contraband items into a state correctional facility.
All 16 defendants have been convicted of Conspiracy to Violate the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act for acts committed between January 2019 and October 2022 in California and Athens-Clarke, Barrow, Bulloch, Candler, Chattooga, Fulton, Gwinnett, Laurens, Monroe and Walton counties. Four of the defendants were also convicted of additional charges. This includes Brantavious Sims, who was convicted of Murder for the shooting death of Lane Bullard in Barrow County in April 2022.
Both Sims and Ramsay were found guilty of all charges brought against them following a 24-day trial in Barrow County. The Jury returned its verdict on Nov. 24, 2025. All other defendants entered pleas over a period of two years.
“By working with our partners at GDC and GBI, we have successfully shut down a violent gang that was operating both inside and outside our prisons – ordering hits on its rivals, trafficking fentanyl in our neighborhoods, and recruiting our children into a life of violent crime,” Attorney General Chris Carr said. “This is exactly why we created Georgia’s first statewide Gang Prosecution Unit, and it’s why we have to be able to jam contraband cell phones in prisons and jails. We’re grateful for the support of Governor Kemp, and we’ll continue fighting each day to keep Georgians safe.”
Currently, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) prohibits state and local governments from jamming contraband cell phones in prisons and jails, but Carr has sought a reversal of that rule for several years.