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Lines of coke. Photo by Colin Davis.

Top 20 Shocking Facts about Black Mafia Family

The Black Mafia Family (BMF) was a drug trafficking and money laundering organization.

Demetrius “Big Meech” Flenory and Terry “Southwest T” Flenory founded the Black Mafia Family in Southwest Detroit in 1985. By 2000, they had established cocaine distribution sales throughout the United States through their Los Angeles-based drug source and direct links to Mexican drug cartels. BMF operated from two main hubs: one in Atlanta for distribution, run by Demetrius Flenory, and one in Los Angeles for incoming Mexican shipments, run by Terry Flenory.

In the early 2000s, the Black Mafia Family, led by Demetrius Flenory, established BMF Entertainment as a front organization to launder money from cocaine sales and legitimize itself. BMF Entertainment promoted several high-profile hip-hop artists and operated a record label for their sole artist, Bleu DaVinci. Demetrius Flenory and the Black Mafia Family became well-known in hip-hop culture for their lavish lifestyles.

1. The Flenorys started dealing cocaine while in High School

During their high school years in the late 1980s, Demetrius Edward “Big Meech” Flenory and his brother Terry P.O. Lee “Southwest T” Flenory began selling $50 bags of cocaine on the streets of Detroit.

By the year 2000, the Flenory brothers had built a large organization that oversaw multi-kilogram cocaine distribution sales in states such as Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, Ohio, and Tennessee.

2. A poverty stricken childhood forced the Flenorys drug-trafficking

Demetrius “Big Meech” Flenory and Chad “J-Bo” Brown. Photo by JoaoSPinto18.

Big Meech during a recorded federal prison phone interview revealed that they grew up poor. They were on welfare, at the gas station with food stamps, they also kept catching the bus with holes in the bottom of their shoes. That was the motivation. They had to quickly change their situation. Once Meech and his brother got a real taste of money, they never wanted that feeling to go away.

3. They engaged in life threatening turf wars while establishing themselves

On the rise, Big Meech and Southwest T faced turf wars, regional territory conquest, survivor’s guilt, and, most importantly, war scars. Southwest T was shot in the right eye in the late 1980s and was permanently blinded. On two separate occasions, Big Meech was shot and wounded.

In the late 1980s, he was shot in the neck outside of a Chinese restaurant, and again in the ass during a 2004 shooting outside an Atlanta nightclub, following an argument with former Puff Daddy bodyguard Anthony “Wolf” Jones, who was killed in the altercation.

4. BMF was best known for their lavish lifestyle

This included 13 multi-million dollar mansions across the United States, the most recent luxury car fleets at their disposal, a direct line to limitless amounts of jewelry from world-renowned trader Jacob The Jeweler, and an expensive wardrobe.

Big Meech and Southwest T attribute their addiction to flashy accessories and fashion to the trendsetting drug dealers they witnessed as children, such as Detroit’s The Chamber Brothers and Young Boys Inc.

5. The BMF empire was split in half after a fued between the brothers

Southwest T’s meticulous control and Big Meech’s obnoxiously flashy appeal, on top of sibling rivalry, caused a rift and led to cracks appearing in the organization at the empire’s peak. Members would frequently recall the brothers’ public spats in interviews over trivial matters. Eventually, each brother’s refusal to hand over complete control to the other resulted in an implosion.

Big Meech and Southwest T agreed to divide the empire at their most powerful point in the organization. T would relocate to Los Angeles in order to be closer to Mexico and to keep a closer eye on the business, while Meech would remain in Atlanta. Members chose sides and relocated to different parts of the United States as a result of the division.

6. Demetrius founded BMF entertainment in the early 2000s

Demetrius Flenory mugshot. Photo by DEA Employee.

Demetrius Flenory founded BMF Entertainment in the early 2000s as a hip-hop music promotion agency and record label. The Flenory brothers had previously been linked to a number of high-profile hip-hop artists, including Diddy, Trina, T.I., Jay-Z, Young Jeezy, and Fabolous.

Demetrius established BMF Entertainment as a front organization for laundering money generated by the cocaine distribution network, but it was also an attempt to establish a legitimate business and legal source of income. After previously going unnamed, the Flenory organization formally adopted the name “Black Mafia Family” around this time.

7. Big Meech was famous for organizing unforgettable and outlandish events

Big Meech and BMF were hip hop’s hottest new company with the launch of a record label and media outlet, and he was known for his larger-than-life persona that fit perfectly with the entertainment industry’s addiction to spectacle.

Rap’s future legends like T.I., Jeezy, Diddy, Jay-Z, and 50 Cent befriended or encountered Big Meech as the genre evolved from an unknown phenomenon that told real-life stories to the most influential musical style in the world. Artists still tell stories about Meech’s countless nightclub escapades with 100-plus entourages and unbelievable luxury items.

Big Meech’s jungle-themed birthday party at Atlanta’s Magic City strip club, which featured a pair of white tigers, is one of the most talked-about stories told by those connected to BMF. Pusha T referenced the memorable moment on his 2018 track ‘If You Know You Know’, where he raps: “Where were you when Big Meech brought the tigers in?”.

8. BMF Entertainment produced critically acclaimed albums

Bleu Da Vinci’s album, World Is BMF’s, was nominated for a Source Award in 2005. BMF appeared in a number of underground hip-hop DVD magazines, most notably S.M.A.C.K. and The Come Up. The most visible appearance of the organization was in a full-length DVD produced by The Raw Report, which provided a detailed inside look at their movement.

The DVD was featured on the cover of Vibe’s May 2006 issue of BMF. DJs praised the Soundsmith Productions-produced song “Streets on Lock,”which was led by BMF affiliate Bleu Davinci and featured Fabolous and Young Jeezy. A music video was later created for the single, but it was never shown on television.

9. Big Meech and BMF’s mythos became a pop culture phenomenon

Hip- Hop’s Shadowy Empire, a three-part series written by Creative Loafing senior editor Mara Shalhoup, was the first in-depth report on the Black Mafia Family. BMF: The Rise and Fall of Big Meech and the Black Mafia Family, written by Shalhoup, was released in March 2005.

Mara Shalhoup became interested in hip-hop journalism after working for daily newspapers for 12 years. She began her own investigation after learning of the ongoing investigations into Demetrius “Big Meech” Flenory and his brother Terry Flenory’s drug dealings. Over 150 people were indicted for drug crimes involving the Black Mafia Family in 2005, and she had a lot more access to attorneys and court files, which are public record.

Jabari Hayes, an alleged BMF member who allegedly served as their courier and distributor, wrote the book Miles in the Life (2009) and is also the executive producer of the same-titled 2017 documentary.

10. Bleu Da Vinci was the only BMF entertainment artist to be arrested

Bleu Davinci, a rapper from Los Angeles, California, is 43 years old. When he joined the Black Mafia Family organization, he relocated to Atlanta, Georgia. In the early 2000s, he signed with BMF Entertainment.

He is the only BMF artist who has received a five-year prison sentence for his involvement in a drug trafficking and money laundering organization.

In 2008, Davinci was sentenced to five years in prison for his involvement with BMF. He claimed at the time that he was unaware of the organization’s illegal activities and that Flenory had presented himself as a musician. He claimed Flenory never showed him “the other side of his world,” referring to drug trafficking. In 2011, he was finally released.

11. Several celebrities and musicians had close ties to BMF

Demetrius Flenory founded BMF Entertainment in the early 2000s as a hip-hop music promotion agency and record label. The Flenory brothers had previously been linked to a number of high-profile hip-hop artists, including Diddy, Trina, T.I., Jay-Z, Young Jeezy, and Fabolous.

12. BMF had intricate drug-trafficking operations across Atlanta

In the Atlanta area, BMF ran five stash houses. Vehicles carrying 100-150 kilograms of cocaine packed in secret compartments would arrive every 10 days. Workers at the stash houses were paid to unload and store the drugs. Customers who ordered would call in and say they had their vehicle ready – a vehicle to transport the narcotics in.

Depending on the size of their order, they were directed to a specific stash house, where they would pull in, go inside, and hand over $5,000 in bundles. Cocaine was typically sold for $20,000 per kilogram. The same vehicles would then be loaded with cash (the proceeds of drug sales) and returned to Mexican supply sources.

Workers inside the stash houses were assigned specific tasks, such as counting large sums of money, usually in the millions. Others were packaging cocaine for customers. BMF also received drugs via large containers containing 100-150 kilograms of cocaine at the airport, which they picked up and delivered to stash houses.

13. Drugs were smuggled using high end luxury vehicles

BMF’s Lincoln Navigator stretch limo was used to transport money and cocaine. It had hidden compartments on the inside, making it difficult to find illegal contraband.

14. BMF laundered money through banks and various wiring services

This was an attempt to disguise the origin of the cash. The group was also accused of purchasing several winning Michigan state lottery tickets from a third party for cash and then cashing them in to make the money appear legitimate.

15. BMF use of violence and intimidation has been well documented 

There were numerous allegations of violence committed by BMF members.

Demetrius Flenory was arrested on November 11, 2003, in connection with the shooting deaths at Club Chaos of Anthony “Wolf” Jones, former bodyguard of P. Diddy, and Wolf’s friend, Lamont “Riz” Girdy. However, Flenory was shot in the buttocks and claimed he was fleeing gunfire; he was never charged.

Ulysses Hackett and his girlfriend Misty Carter were executed in her Highland Avenue apartment in Atlanta in September 2004. According to police, Tremayne “Kiki” Graham, the son-in-law of Shirley Franklin, the Mayor of Atlanta, and an alleged associate of BMF, ordered the murders. They claimed Ulysses was considering testifying against BMF, and Graham, suspicious, ordered their assassination.

16. Law enforcement officers had a code-name for the BMF investigation

The Black Mafia was investigated by police in the early 1990s, before the organization run by Demetrius and Terry Flenory was named or reached its peak distribution.

A series of large drug seizures and subsequent informant testimonies from BMF members preceded the October 2005 indictments. On October 28, 2003, a two-year Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force investigation, coordinated by the DEA’s Special Operations Division and codenamed “Operation Motor City Mafia,” was launched.

17. Police used wiretaps to gather evidence on BMF’s criminal activities

A wiretap on Rafael “Smurf” Allison, a low-level crack dealer in Atlanta, led a HIDTA task force to Decarlo Hoskins, a mid-level dealer, in mid-September 2004. Hoskins told them he grew up with two brothers, Omari McCree and Jeffrey Leahr, who were BMF members and could regularly supply multi-kilogram quantities of cocaine. Wiretaps revealed that Demetrius favored Omari McCree, a high-level distributor for the Flenory organization.

Due to the wiretaps, Jeffrey Leahr and his girlfriend were pulled over on I-75 in Atlanta on November 5, 2004. A duffel bag containing 10 kilograms of cocaine was found in the back seat.

The government had 900 pages of typed transcripts of wiretapped conversations from Terry’s phone by the time charges were filed against the Flenorys.

18. The Flenory brothers were indicted in 2005

In October 2005, it was reported that the DEA arrested 30 members of the BMF in a massive drug raid. The DEA seized $3 million in cash and assets, 2.5 kilograms of cocaine, and numerous weapons during these raids. [19] The DEA had already arrested 17 BMF members and seized 632 kilograms of cocaine, $5.3 million in cash, and $5.7 million in assets prior to the October 2005 raids. They claimed BMF was in charge of transporting over 2,500 kilograms of cocaine per month across the United States.

Demetrius and Terry Flenory were charged with conspiracy to distribute 5 kilograms or more of cocaine, possession with intent to distribute more than 500 grams of cocaine, conspiracy to launder monetary instruments, and two counts of possession with intent to distribute more than 5 kilograms of cocaine under the Continuing Criminal Enterprise Statute. Demetrius was apprehended in a large home in a Dallas suburb. Police discovered a small amount of marijuana and a few MDMA pills inside. There were several weapons in a safe inside the house, as well as several vehicles. Terry was apprehended in St. Louis with small amounts of marijuana and weapons discovered throughout the house, which was also occupied at the time of the arrest by multiple people.

19. Both BMF founders were incacerated for 30 years

A man behind bars. Photo by Harry Shelton.

The brothers pleaded guilty to running a continuing criminal enterprise in November 2007. Both brothers were sentenced to 30 years in prison in September 2008 for running a nationwide cocaine-trafficking ring from 2000 to 2005. Demetrius Flenory is currently serving his sentence at the Federal Correctional Institution in Sheridan and is scheduled to be released on May 5, 2028, just before his 60th birthday. Terry Flenory was released to home confinement on May 5, 2020, following a compassionate release due to health issues and a Federal Bureau of Prisons effort to release certain inmates in order to limit the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic within federal prisons.

Demetrius Flenory also sought his release under the same guidelines, but a federal judge denied the request, claiming it would be premature to authorize his release because his prison record indicates he has not changed and continues to promote himself as a drug kingpin, and his disciplinary record includes violations such as possession of a cell phone and weapons, as well as drug use.

20. The BMF empire was worth 270 million dollars

100 US dollar banknotes. Photo by Pepi Stojanovski.

The empire was reportedly worth $270 million dollars at the time of the RICO indictment. The indictment sought the forfeiture of “more than 30 pieces of jewelry, 13 residences, 35 vehicles including Lincoln Limousine, BMW’s, Range Rovers, Aston-Martin, and Bentleys, numerous bank accounts, over $1.2 million in seized currency, and a money judgment totaling $270 million.