Briyon Shuford, a 30-year-old resident of Washington D.C., has been sentenced to 161 months in prison. His sentencing is linked to his involvement in a daylight drive-by shooting that left four people seriously injured and his participation in the "21st and Vietnam" crew, a violent drug trafficking group. This group was known for distributing significant amounts of illegal substances, including crack cocaine, fentanyl, methamphetamine, PCP, and n-n-dimethylpentylone.
The sentence was announced by U.S. Attorney Edward R. Martin Jr., alongside officials from various law enforcement agencies. These include FBI Special Agent Sean Ryan from the Washington Field Office’s Criminal and Cyber Division, DEA Acting Special Agent Ibrar A. Mian from the Washington Division, Special Agent Troy Springer from the National Capital Region of the U.S. Department of Labor - Office of Inspector General, and Chief Pamela Smith of the Metropolitan Police Department.
Shuford, also known as “Breezy,” entered a guilty plea on October 31, 2024. He faced charges of conspiracy to distribute fentanyl, possessing a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking crime, and aggravated assault while armed. Alongside his prison term, U.S. District Court Judge Beryl A. Howell mandated five years of supervised release for Shuford.
Court documents reveal that the "21st and Vietnam" crew operated an open-air drug market using an apartment building on I Street NE as their base. Drug sales were frequent between June 2023 and May 2024 until arrests were made.
On April 19, 2024, Shuford met with co-defendant Trevon Palmer at this location before they switched vehicles to a stolen Infiniti sedan. They then drove to Mt. Olivet Road NE where they fired shots into a parking lot near Circle 7 Food and Grocery Mart injuring four individuals.
Shuford's role extended beyond shootings; he was actively involved in drug sales within the crew. He facilitated large-scale transactions such as one involving over 80 grams of fentanyl sold by co-defendant Damien Jenkins while conducting another sale himself nearby.
Law enforcement apprehended Shuford on May 15, 2024 during which they found distribution quantities of suspected marijuana along with packaging supplies at his residence plus $12,637 cash and a Glock firearm.
The investigation was conducted by DEA’s Washington Division Office together with FBI’s Washington Field Office and MPD under prosecution led by Assistant United States Attorneys Andrea Duvall & Solomon Eppel.
Photos uploaded online in 2023 showed Shuford carrying firearms indicating prior possession history related concerns surrounding this case.