Two BL-800 Gang Members Plead Guilty in Fatal Car Chase Shooting

Posted on 3/24/2025

Defendant: Hussein Bilal & Abdulkadirshendy Ahmed

Two members of the “Bantu Life” street gang whose violence has plagued the Hilltop’s Wedgewood community were sentenced today in the 2022 fatal shooting of a West Side man.
 
Hussein Bilal, 23, and Abdulkadirshendy Ahmed, 20, both pleaded guilty to charges of involuntary manslaughter with firearm and criminal gang specifications. Franklin County Common Pleas Court Judge Kim J. Brown sentenced both men to 15 to 20½ years in prison.
 
In all, 14 defendants, including Bilal and Ahmed, have pleaded guilty in connection to the shooting and crimes tied to Bantu Life, or BL-800.
 
“The residents of Wedgewood deserve to feel safe in their homes. I hope the entire community can rest easier knowing that these men have been held accountable,” said Franklin County Prosecutor Shayla D. Favor. “I am grateful to prosecutors Steven Schott and Jason Manning for their hard work on these cases and their commitment to helping Franklin County eliminate senseless gang violence.”
 
Case Background
 
On the evening of Aug. 19, 2022, Columbus police were called to the 3000 block of Wicklow Road in the Hilltop on reports of gunfire. Callers to 911 said two vehicles were chasing and shooting at each other.
 
Officers were directed to Parkside Road and South Roys Avenue, where they found Miguel Arriola, 32, seated inside his vehicle and suffering from a gunshot wound. Arriola died at the scene just before 11 p.m.; another man in the vehicle survived.
 
Bilal was arrested in September of 2022, kicking off a series of arrests tied to BL-800 crimes stemming from an unrelated 18-month police investigation. Ahmed was arrested that December.