Reputed North Miami ‘Terrorist Boyz’ gang member acquitted of murder, faces other trials
A reputed member of the notorious “Terrorist Boyz” street gang has been acquitted of murder.
Jurors late Monday found Benson Cadet not guilty of one count of first-degree murder — just one of a dozen murders or attempted murders that prosecutors say that members committed during a bloody gang war two decades ago in North Miami-Dade. The jury deliberated seven hours over two days. Testimony lasted about a month.
It was Cadet’s second trial. His first, in 2019, ended with him being convicted of one count of conspiracy, acquitted of several other charges and a jury deadlocking on a slew of other counts.
“He was very excited. I’m very happy,” defense attorney Scott Sakin said after the verdict. “This was a case based on the testimony of four cooperating witnesses and one jailhouse snitch. It was based on false premises and false testimony.”
Cadet, 39, won’t be getting out of prison. He’s still facing trial for several other murder and attempted murder charges stemming from the same indictment. And Cadet already faces up to 30 years in prison when he’s sentenced next month for the 2019 conspiracy conviction.
He was on trial for the 2002 murder of Jerry St. Pierre, although prosecutors introduced evidence about several other murders.
The gang war rocked North Miami and North Miami Beach in 2002, and started when investigators say the Terrorist Boyz plowed a car through the front door of a Broward County gun shop and stole 33 firearms. Over the coming months, prosecutors say, the group mounted “missions,” donning ski masks and gloves and using stolen cars to ambush their enemies on the streets.
Cadet himself had been accused of taking part in four murders and over a dozen attempted murders in North Miami-Dade, a spate of violence that alarmed city leaders and led to the creation of a police task force.
A grand jury indicted five reputed gang members in 2007. By 2016, the Terrorist Boyz gang case earned the notoriety of being the most expensive death-penalty case in recent Florida history.
Those indicted were Cadet, Frantzy Jean-Marie, Max Daniel, Robert St. Germain and the suspected ringleader, Johnny Charles, also known as the “Angel of Death.” St. Germain took a plea deal and was sentenced to 12 years behind bars. Jean-Marie lost at trial and is serving a life sentence. Charles and Daniel are still awaiting trial.
This story was originally published October 18, 2022 at 10:22 AM.