Federal agents are in the midst of a major sweep of suspects associated with convicted murderer Telly Hankton and his alleged drug and violent crime network, several sources said. The roundup includes the detention of Hankton's mother, Shirley Hankton, early Friday morning, according to wwltv.com.
She has been accused by state prosecutors of playing a role in an alleged perjury scheme aimed at freeing Telly Hankton last year in the first trial against him for the 2008 murder of Darnell Stewart on South Claiborne Avenue.
That trial ended with a deadlocked jury. Hankton was later convicted in Stewart's murder and sentenced to life in prison. Shortly after his sentencing, the brother of a key witness in the case was gunned down just steps from where Stewart was killed.
Sources said the roundup began last night, after a federal grand jury called several people in to testify over an Uptown-based drug and crime network allegedly led by Telly Hankton.
Several criminal justice sources have told The Times-Picayune that U.S. Attorney Jim Letten's office has been preparing a major racketeering indictment against the Hankton clan, with perhaps a dozen or more people expected to face criminal charges.
No indictment has been filed into the public record yet.
Kyle Hanrahan, an FBI spokesman, declined to comment on the sweep Friday, referring inquiries to Letten's office. A call to Letten was not immediately returned Friday morning.
At least a handful of people have so far been detained, sources said.
Follow NOLA.com for developments in the case.
Source: http://www.nola.com/crime/index.ssf/2012/10/report_telly_hanktons_mother_b.html
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