⚠️ The Gutter Report: The Syracuse Setup — What Happened to Nahkeen Lewis-Bush?
How a “mastermind” with no gun ended up with 40 years
In 2019, Syracuse media ran with a headline that sounded simple: three teens tried to execute a man, they missed, and the alleged mastermind — Nahkeen Lewis-Bush — got 40 years in prison.
But once you start reading Nahkeen’s letters from inside, that story stops sounding simple and starts sounding like a case built on power, favors, and silence.
This is Part 1 of a Gutter Report series on what really happened to Nahkeen Lewis-Bush — and why a man with no gun, no injuries on the victim, and co-defendants who took responsibility is serving more time than many killers.
🧔🏾♂️ Who is Nahkeen Lewis-Bush?
🔎 A young man buried by the system — not by evidence.
Nahkeen is a Syracuse man convicted as the alleged “mastermind” of a 2017 attempted execution. According to prosecutors and local reporting:
Three younger co-defendants actually fired the shots.
The intended target, Erick Ortiz, was not hit.
Nahkeen was painted as the older shot-caller who ordered the hit and supplied the guns.
For that, he received a 40-year sentence — even though, by the state’s own narrative, he never fired a weapon.
From his prison cell, he’s telling a completely different story.
📅 The Night Syracuse Says Almost Turned Deadly
On September 13, 2017, Nahkeen was first arrested on charges like reckless endangerment and weapon possession.
Months later, the DA escalated everything. His indictment was superseded to include:
Attempted murder
Attempted assault
Reckless endangerment
Weapons possession
At a suppression hearing, Nahkeen says the judge acknowledged the evidence was thin — and specifically noted that the attempted-murder theory only had real weight if the alleged victim, Erick Ortiz, testified that he was a victim and that three shooters tried to kill him.
Ortiz never testified.
According to Nahkeen, Ortiz has now signed an affidavit saying he does not consider himself a victim and does not believe Nahkeen tried to kill him.
So why is he still serving 40 years?
⚖️ “I Got More Time Than Many Killers”
Nahkeen’s letters describe a pattern:
His co-defendants beat their attempted-murder charges.
They took plea deals to lesser offenses.
They wrote affidavits taking responsibility and clearing him.
Nobody was injured.
No gun was recovered from Nahkeen.
No new evidence ever appeared.
Yet he — the alleged “mastermind” — received the harshest sentence.
“Here I am with nobody injured and I got more time than many killers today.”
That’s not just a harsh outcome.
That’s a man saying: the system made an example out of me.
🏛️ A DA in Power for Decades
⚔️ The long-standing power at the top of Syracuse’s justice machine.
A major part of Nahkeen’s narrative centers on longtime Onondaga County District Attorney William Fitzpatrick, whom he describes as:
Running the DA’s office for “40–50 years straight”
Someone who trades favors
Someone who shapes outcomes behind the scenes
A figure whose office has a long history of aggressive charging
Nahkeen’s allegation is simple:
You couldn’t beat the machine — not in Syracuse, not with the DA watching your case, and not when your own lawyer was compromised.
This is one of the central questions this series will explore.
📝 The Lawyer Who Became an Enemy
🕳️ A defense attorney whose conflicts may have cost a man his life.
According to Nahkeen, his defense attorney — Paul Carey, a once-respected Syracuse lawyer who later became a judge — did not defend him, did not fight for him, and may have helped the DA bury him.
Nahkeen claims:
Carey was “trading people in” through quiet deals.
He had personal conflict with Nahkeen after learning Nahkeen slept with Carey’s paralegal, Carissa Leigh Clark.
Clark later provided Nahkeen hidden documents she says Carey kept from him.
Those documents allegedly show he was never legally indicted on the most serious charges.
Clark also reportedly gave Nahkeen $50,000 — and Carey retaliated by accusing her of stealing it.
If these claims hold up, they point to:
Conflict of interest
Ineffective assistance of counsel
Suppressed evidence
Misconduct inside the defense team
This isn’t ordinary attorney-client fallout.
This goes directly to the validity and legality of the conviction itself.
📜 The 440.10 Motion: His Last Real Shot
Nahkeen is now preparing a CPL 440.10 Actual Innocence motion, one of the strongest post-conviction tools in New York.
According to his letters:
He mailed out notarized affidavits from witnesses.
His mother secured grand jury minutes.
His new attorney believes the case can be overturned.
His co-defendants no longer appear on his indictment.
There is no physical evidence tying him to attempted murder.
The only evidence that ever mattered — Ortiz’s testimony — never happened.
If the affidavits support what he’s saying…
If the grand jury minutes show what he claims…
If the new evidence proves a defective indictment…
This becomes more than a harsh sentence.
This becomes a possible wrongful conviction.
🧠 Why This Case Matters
Beyond Nahkeen’s individual story, this case forces bigger questions:
How much unchecked power can a DA’s office hold in a city like Syracuse?
What happens when a defense lawyer becomes entangled in personal conflict?
Why did co-defendants walk while the non-shooter got 40 years?
How often do young Black men get labeled “masterminds” without evidence?
What accountability exists when victims and witnesses contradict the state?
This Gutter Report series is not about hype.
It’s about shining light where the system counts on shadows.
🔍 What’s Coming in Part 2
In Part 2, we’ll break down:
The charging documents
The media narrative vs reality
The full timeline from arrest to sentencing
What’s inside the affidavits and grand jury minutes
How the attempted-murder story collapses under scrutiny
If you have information related to the Onondaga County DA’s office, the defense counsel involved, or this case:
📧 Email: LFTGRadio@gmail.com
Not for clicks — for clarity.
— Elliott Carterr, LFTG Radio
