Milwaukee men convicted in federal murder-for-hire case

Listen to this article

Two Milwaukee men were convicted of charges related to a murder for hire case Wednesday after a week-long jury trial in federal court.

Ronnell Bowman of Milwaukee and Houston and Lawrence Turner of Milwaukee were convicted of murder for hire resulting in death, conspiracy to commit murder for hire resulting in death and discharge of a firearm during a crime of violence. Bowman was also convicted of conspiracy to commit violations of federal firearms laws, attempted witness tampering and conspiracy to obstruct justice.

At trial, evidence showed that between March 15, 2021, and April 5, 2021, Bowman and Turner — who are both members of the Wild 100s gang — arranged the murder of N.B. in exchange for Bowman’s offer to pay $10,000. Turner and another gang member, who already pleaded guilty to the April 5, 2021, murder of N.B. The victim had more than two dozen gunshot wounds.

According to court records, the evidence showed Bowman and Turner targeted N.B. and murdered him because of his believed association with a rival of Wild 100s gang. Both men face mandatory life imprisonment.

Bowman and Turner were also convicted of using, carrying and discharging a firearm during a crime of violence, namely, the murder for hire. That count carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years and a maximum penalty of up to life in prison.

Trial evidence further showed that Bowman agreed with others to violate federal firearms laws including possession of machineguns, the transfer of firearms to felons and the possession of firearms by felons. Bowman also attempted to intimidate, threaten or corruptly persuade witnesses and conspired with others to attempt to obstruct justice and impede the jury trial in this case. The conspiracy to commit violations of federal firearms laws carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and the witness tampering counts each carry a maximum term of 20 years in prison.

Before trial, both Bowman and Turner pled guilty to participating in a mail fraud conspiracy to defraud the Department of Labor through the submission of false and fraudulent applications for benefits under programs such as the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance Program and other unemployment insurance programs. In total, Bowman, Turner and their other conspirators wrongfully obtained millions of federal dollars through their fraudulent activities and used the funds to purchase, among other things, firearms, controlled substances, jewelry and vacations, and to solicit the murder for hire.