Feds charge 4 with Chicago gang murder, including 2 who were on bail for gun cases (2024)

CHICAGO — Federal prosecutors this week announced racketeering and gun charges against four men who allegedly killed another man three years ago to elevate their positions in a Chicago street gang. Two of the men were on pretrial release for state gun cases when the murder occurred.

Joshua Broughton, 34, and Grieg Macon, 27, are the 78th and 79th people charged with killing, shooting, or trying to kill someone in Chicago while on felony pretrial release in 2021. The crimes involved 115 victims, 34 of whom died.

Broughton and Macon, working with Christopher Singleton, 24, and Jaron Davis, 22, killed Ogonnia Okeke on June 1, 2021, federal prosecutors said Friday. Okeke, 25, was involved in a faction of the Gangster Disciples street gang, which has been in a violent conflict with the accused men’s Rack City gang, according to a federal court filing.

In a criminal complaint filed against Singleton, an FBI agent said investigators executed search warrants on Facebook account JuskiiGangShoota and Instagram account celblockgang that uncovered messages in which Singleton threatened to kill someone in Okeke’s gang.

Two days later, Chicago police found Okeke mortally wounded on the back porch of a home in the 9100 block of South Wentworth. He had been working on his dirt bike when “at least two” gunmen exited an SUV and opened fire on him, the complaint said. Police found shell casings from three different firearms at the scene.

Within ten minutes, Singleton allegedly began messaging a member of Okeke’s gang about the murder. He sent the rival screenshots of tweets about the murder from @spotnewsonig, a long-running Twitter account that reports Chicago police radio activity in real-time.

The rival gang member repeatedly replied that Okeke wasn’t a member of the Rack City gang and that Singleton’s crew had killed an “innocent,” said the complaint. The rival went on to question whether Rack City was even responsible for Okeke’s murder at all.

Singleton responded by sending photos of one of the gunmen who killed Okeke while riding around in a car with guns, according to the complaint. The man in the photos bears a strong resemblance to Macon. A video Singleton sent later showed him and other men with guns in an SUV or truck. Based on their appearance, clothing, and other details, an FBI agent concluded that Singleton recorded the video within minutes of Okeke’s murder.

Nearly a year later, Chicago police arrested Singleton for allegedly possessing a firearm while fleeing from police in a stolen car. While he was in custody, investigators began questioning him about the killing.

After being shown video of Okeke’s murder, Singleton allegedly placed phone calls from the Cook County jail in which he told people that law enforcement “had everything” and that the people he spoke with should “throw out the garbage” and delete social media accounts, the complaint said.

Singleton also told people in recorded jailhouse calls that he needed to bail out of jail so he could “take off,” according to the complaint.

“I’m finna go far away bro […] far, far, far, far, far,” Singleton allegedly told one person. “I wish I could tell you bro, its gonna f*** your mind up.”

Federal officials said Singleton also posted a social media photo of himself holding a large amount of cash and bragging about getting “a quick 10” by filing for COVID relief funds from the Small Business Administration.

Singleton pleaded guilty to aggravated fleeing last August in exchange for a two-year sentence. Cook County prosecutors dropped the gun and stolen motor vehicle charges.

Both Broughton and Macon were on pretrial release for allegedly being felons in possession of firearms at the time of Okeke’s murder, according to Cook County court records. Macon’s case is still pending. Broughton’s case is pending, too, because he stopped showing up for court on December 12, records show. A warrant has been out for his arrest since then.

The “not horrible” series

This report continues our coverage of individuals accused of killing, shooting, or trying to kill or shoot others on pretrial release for a felony allegation. CWBChicago began our series of reports in November 2019 after Cook County Chief Judge Timothy Evanspublicly stated,“We haven’t had any horrible incidents occur” under the court’s bond reform initiative.

On September 18, 2023, the state of Illinois eliminated cash bail entirely. Our “not horrible” series will continue under the new program.