James Graham, also known as "Little Cuz," has been sentenced to 57 months in federal prison for obstructing justice. The sentence, delivered by U.S. District Judge Kari A. Dooley in Bridgeport, will run concurrently with a 52-year state sentence he is already serving for murder and other offenses.
The announcement was made by Marc H. Silverman, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut; Maureen T. Platt, State’s Attorney for the Waterbury Judicial District; Anish Shukla, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the New Haven Division of the FBI; James Ferguson, Special Agent in Charge of ATF Boston Field Division; and Waterbury Police Chief Fernando C. Spagnolo.
Graham's conviction stems from his involvement with the 960 gang, a violent street gang based in Waterbury. On September 14, 2021, a federal grand jury indicted Graham and 15 other members on various charges including racketeering and obstruction of justice.
The case highlights an incident on November 22, 2017, when fellow gang members Zaekwon McDaniel, Tahjay Love, and Malik Bayon shot at Clarence Lewis and Antonio Santos at a restaurant in Waterbury. The attack resulted in a car crash that killed both Lewis and Santos.
Graham was found guilty on February 14, 2024. Love, McDaniel, and Bayon were also convicted related to their roles in the deaths of Lewis and Santos but await sentencing.
The investigation involved multiple law enforcement agencies including the FBI’s Northern Connecticut Gang Task Force and the ATF. The prosecution team includes Assistant U.S. Attorneys Geoffrey M. Stone, John T. Pierpont Jr., Natasha M. Freismuth as well as cross-designated Special Assistant U.S. Attorneys Don E. Therkildesen Jr., and Alexandra Arroyo.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) aimed at reducing gun violence through collaboration between law enforcement agencies and communities. It is also associated with the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF), which targets drug traffickers and criminal organizations.
For more information about these programs visit www.justice.gov/psn or https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.