NORFOLK, Va. — A former gang leader has been sentenced to 45 years behind bars after courts say he played a role in the killing of a 23-year-old man.

Court documents show Rashaun Antonio Taylor, a.k.a. “Diablo,” was a leader of the Nine Trey Gangsters, affiliated with the United Blood Nation.

On March 11, 2014, officials say Taylor followed 23-year-old Delante Eley to Eley’s grandparents’ home in Portsmouth, where he shot and killed him. There had been a history of incidents between members of the Nine Trey Gangsters and Eley.

Just two days after the murder, Taylor was located with other alleged gang members and stopped by law enforcement. According to police, at the time he was stopped, Taylor was armed with a high-powered, Romanian-made, semi-automatic rifle.

Detectives then decided to execute a search warrant on Taylor’s home.

While there, law enforcement say they recovered gang-related paraphernalia and Taylor’s cell phone. After analyzing the phone, the FBI says they found it had been turned off for a couple of hours before and after the murder.

In addition, agents say 200 calls made between the time of the murder and the traffic stop had been deleted.

A confidential informant later videotaped a gang meeting led by Taylor, and several days later Taylor was overheard by the FBI and Portsmouth Police via a wire transmitter admitting to the murder, court documents say.

“Taylor murdered Delante Eley in cold blood and nearly killed two others… Threats of violence against fellow gang members, non-gang members, and even a probation officer were common for Taylor, who has spent a lifetime putting others, and this community, in fear. This life sentence will prevent Taylor from taking another life,”

G. Zachary Terwilliger | U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia

On Feb. 20, 2020, after a week-long trial, court documents show a jury convicted Taylor of a racketeering conspiracy, which included murder, the use of a firearm resulting in death, distribution of heroin, and being a felon in possession of a firearm.

Stay with WAVY.com for local news updates.