Salvador Perez leader of a Mexican Mafia prison gang has been sentenced to life in prison without parole in San Diego federal court.

leader of a Mexican Mafia prison gang has been sentenced to life in prison without parole in San Diego federal court. Prosecutors say 31-year-old Salvador Perez was sentenced Friday in District Court, after pleading guilty two years ago to racketeering conspiracy charges. The charges followed a lengthy investigation of San Diego street gangs with ties to the Mexican Mafia. Perez is the last of 35 defendants to be sentenced after that probe. In October 2007, Perez admitted participating in the June 2002 murder of inmate Jabila Barragan in Susanville.
U.S. Attorney Karen P. Hewitt says Perez also acknowledged that the Mexican Mafia engages in murder, attempted murder, drug sales, robbery and money laundering.

Read more »

Los Angeles Police detectives are investigating a gang drive-by shooting that claimed the life of 18-year-old Christopher Herrera

Los Angeles Police detectives are investigating a gang drive-by shooting that claimed the life of 18-year-old Christopher Herrera and wounded another.On Saturday, May 23, 2009, at around 2:50 a.m., Christopher Herrera and his friend, a 16-year-old girl, were walking in the 700 block of South Normandie Avenue in Koreatown when they were approached by an unknown vehicle. Multiple shots were fired at them, striking both of them. The suspects were only described as male Hispanics who drove away after the shooting. Herrera died from his injuries and his friend underwent surgery and is listed in stable condition at a local hospital.The motive for the shooting is gang-related.

Read more »

Dirty White Boys prison gang ,William Harigan Rambo III wife is 39-year-old Grace Kopacz. She is a law partner with Mokaram Freeman Kopacz.

Investigators say while working undercover, they bought the drug ecstasy from Rambo. He then allegedly told them about his wife and how they were able to hide drug money. Police say that is when they began to investigate. Rambo’s wife is 39-year-old Grace Kopacz. She is a law partner with Mokaram Freeman & Kopacz. Their offices are located in the Galleria area, where on Friday afternoon, police came and arrested Kopacz. Kopacz and her husband have been charged with money laundering and are scheduled to appear before a judge in the Harris County Criminal Justice Center this week. Kopacz has also been charged with insurance fraud. The DEA says she recently filed an insurance claim stating that one of her vehicles had been stolen, but she allegedly had arranged for her vehicle to disappear. We don’t know how Kopacz originally met her husband, but he has been in trouble with the law before.
The DEA says he is a member of the Dirty White Boys prison gang, a group that associates itself with the Aryan Brotherhood.

Read more »

Elvin Payton, 26, and Beatrice Rosado, 24, both of the 700 block of North Avers Avenue, are both charged with first-degree murder

Elvin Payton, 26, and Beatrice Rosado, 24, both of the 700 block of North Avers Avenue, are both charged with first-degree murder in the slaying of Michael Norton, 55, of unincorporated DuPage County near Glen Ellyn. Rosado also faces an unrelated battery charge.Cook County Criminal Court Judge Adam Bourgeois today ordered them both held without bond. Norton was killed on May 14 around 7 p.m. at his store in the 4700 block of West North Avenue, according to police.The corner store uses an address of 1555 N. Cicero Ave.Although police said that the slaying was related to a robbery of the store, residents of the building and neighbors had said Norton was threatened by gangbangers after he evicted a woman from the building, which he owned, about two weeks before his slaying.Today, Asst. State’s Atty. Joy Tolbert Nelson said Rosado, who apparently had the lease on the apartment, was evicted two weeks before the slaying, along with Payton, who lived with her.Payton is an admitted member of the Latin Styler street gang, according to court records.
A witness saw Payton and another man enter the store, lock the door and later leave, Tolbert Nelson said. As the two left, they removed masks that covered their faces and Rosado was seen at a van in the area about the time of the slaying, Tolbert Nelson said.Police officers responding to a robbery call found Norton, with his hands and feet bound, face down on floor, shot once in the back of the head.
The two were arrested after a police radio band alert saying they were wanted in connection with the slaying. After their arrest, both were identified in lineups and gave statements, Tolbert Nelson said. Payton admitted to participating in the robbery and shooting of Norton and Rosado admitted to being involved in the slaying, Tolbert Nelson said.Defense attorneys provided no employment information on Payton but said he stayed home and watched a child the couple had had together and Rosado’s three older children.Payton appeared in court in a red hoodie, and Rosado wore a black-and-white striped jacket.Daisy Rodriguez, Rosado’s mother, said her daughter was “terrified” of Payton. “He made her do this,” she said.Her family said Rosado and Payton had been together for about two years.

Read more »

Three dots,tres puntos in Spanish represented: the three words Mi Vida Loca. My Crazy Life.

Three dots,tres puntos in Spanish represented: the three words Mi Vida Loca. My Crazy Life.The tattoo is often seen on the hands of members of MS-13, the gang known internationally as La Mara Salvatrucha.The police gang unit began to log its contacts with the man, Jose Adolfo Aldana-Ramirez, an immigrant from El Salvador. Officers noted his clothing and his companions, some of whom were MS-13 members alreadydocumented by the unit.This month, Aldana-Ramirez pleaded guilty to participating in a criminal gang, a charge that state lawmakers enacted 10 years ago to crack down on gang crimes.Since then, the charge has been used in 116 felony cases in Franklin County, including 25 times against juveniles, a review of court records shows.Though not used frequently, the law has helped lock up some of the 1,000 or so gang members in Columbus, police and prosecutors say. It carries a sentence of up to eight years in prison.''That's a pretty big hammer to hit somebody with,'' said James Sandford, a Columbus police detective who specializes in the MS-13 gang.Defense attorneys, on the other hand, say the law is vague and prejudicial.The American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio thinks that it unfairly skews enforcement toward urban areas, education director Shakyra Diaz said. The risk for guilt by association is great and could land innocent people on watch lists, she said.
To establish a person as an active gang member, police use criteria such as dress, hangouts, associates and the person's own admissions.''It starts out as something that simple,'' Sgt. Chantay Boxill of the Columbus police gang unit said of Aldana-Ramirez's tattoos. After Boxill's unit began keeping track of him, police obtained a threatening voice-mail message that Aldana-Ramirez had left for a rival: ''You'll realize the Salvatruchas. No one laughs at the MS-13.''When Aldana-Ramirez was caught with a loaded .38 under his driver's seat in August, the gang unit also charged him with participating in a criminal gang.Ramirez pleaded guilty to carrying a concealed weapon and the gang charge on May 13 in Franklin County Common Pleas Court and was sent to prison for four years. When he is released, he will be deported.Though Aldana-Ramirez pleaded guilty, he got his dot tattoos at age 15 and denies being a member of MS-13 today, his attorney, Joseph L. Mas, said.
Mas also questioned whether the gang law is constitutional.''We usually find a police officer or a task force that studies a community and then brings charges,'' he said. ''Then, they act as their own witnesses to support the existence of a gang. . . . I don't think the appeals courts have had an ample opportunity to study the matter.''Both the Franklin County Court of Appeals and the U.S. Supreme Court have upheld gang statutes. At least 18 states have anti-gang laws.''It's been helpful,'' Franklin County Prosecutor Ron O'Brien said. ''But often we face a situation where we know he's a gang member, he knows he's a gang member, and the police know he's a gang member, but we can't prove it in a court of law.''
Usually, he said, gang members are tied to other crimes so prosecutors don't need to rely on just the gang charge to obtain a conviction.In 2002, Ohio added the so-called gang specification, in which more prison time can be imposed by a judge for any felony if the offender commits that crime while participating in a criminal gang.

Read more »

Cortez Brown “killing machine,” sentenced the admitted Gangster Disciple to death.

Cortez Brown “killing machine,” sentenced the admitted Gangster Disciple to death.

On Friday, a different judge in the same courthouse — citing “staggering” and “damning” new evidence — overturned Brown’s murder conviction and ordered a new trial.

Cheers erupted in the courtroom, and Brown clenched his fists as Judge Clayton Crane sided with Brown’s attorneys, who said their client confessed to murder in 1990 only after being beaten by detectives working under former Chicago Police Cmdr. Jon Burge.In making his ruling, Crane said he was at a disadvantage because all three of the detectives who originally interrogated Brown took the stand this week, only to invoke their Fifth Amendment right not to testify.“My advantage is I have some additional evidence as to the behavior of some, if not all, of the detectives in this case,” Crane said. “That evidence is staggering. That evidence is damning.”Crane did not cite specific evidence and declined to elaborate after his ruling. Brown’s attorneys referred to “massive, massive documentation that these particular detectives were corrupt.”“This is a wonderful victory, not only for [Brown], but for the entire human rights movement and the entire movement against police torture in this city,” said Flint Taylor, one of Brown’s attorneys.
Victoria Safforld, Brown’s 18-year-old daughter, said, “I’m just real happy because I ain’t never had the chance to be with my father. ... I stay with a positive attitude because my daddy always stays with a positive attitude.”It was unclear Friday if Brown will be retried. He remains in the Cook County Jail. Illinois State Attorney General Lisa Madigan’s office is handling several cases that include allegations of police brutality overseen by Burge.“Our goal all along has been, and continues to be, to ensure that justice is served by carefully reviewing the merits of each of these [Burge-related] cases,” said Robyn Ziegler, a Madigan spokeswoman. Ziegler said Madigan’s office has not yet made a decision about the next step in the Brown case.Brown says he is innocent. He contends detectives beat him with their fists and a metal flashlight, forcing him to confess to the 1990 gang-related murders of Delvin Botler and Curtis Sims. Brown was initially sentenced to 35 years for Botler’s murder.He was later convicted and sentenced in 1992 to death for Sims’ murder.Former Gov. George Ryan commuted Brown’s death sentence to life in prison.
During this week’s hearing, prosecutors told Crane that if Brown was truly beaten, he would have had marks on his body and he would have reported the abuse much earlier. Prosecutors described Brown as an admitted gang banger who can’t keep his stories straight.On Friday, Crane said Brown — who testified about the alleged abuse this week — was “not a good witness,” and said he has changed his stories about how he was allegedly beaten.But Crane also said he paid particular attention to the fact that none of the detectives who interrogated Brown would answer questions on the witness stand.

Read more »

Latino street gang has waged a racist campaign to eliminate black people from a Southern California city through attempted murders and other crimes.

"(Varrio Hawaiian Gardens) gang members take pride in their racism and often refer to the VHG Gang as the 'Hate Gang,'" the main indictment states. "VHG gang members have expressed a desire to rid the city of Hawaiian Gardens of all African-Americans and have engaged in a systematic effort to achieve that result by perpetrating crimes against African-Americans."Latino street gang has waged a racist campaign to eliminate black people from a Southern California city through attempted murders and other crimes.
Five indictments charged a total of 147 members and associates of the Varrio Hawaiian Gardens gang, and federal and local agencies arrested 63 of them by early Thursday, U.S. Attorney Thomas P. O'Brien told a press conference.O'Brien asserted it was "the largest gang takedown in United States history," but he did not immediately elaborate. The indictments detail attempted murder, kidnapping, firearms, narcotics and other charges related to attacks by the gang, which primarily operates in Hawaiian Gardens, a city of about 15,000 people in southeastern Los Angeles County. The indictment alleges a string of attacks on black residents, including a shooting into a home with eight people inside. The indictment does not say if anyone was hit. In another instance, two gang members allegedly chased a black man, yelled a racist epithet at him and then beat him with a garden rake. The same man was later repeatedly stabbed by two gang members, according to the indictment, which charges them with his attempted murder. In the 2000 Census, the latest data available, Hawaiian Gardens was roughly 73 percent Hispanic and 4 percent black. The city was incorporated in 1964 and, according to local lore, was named after a bamboo snack shack built in 1927. The indictments mark at least the second time in less than two years that federal authorities have alleged that Latino gang members in Southern California attacked black residents because of their race. In 2007, agents arrested dozens of members of the Florencia 13 gang in South Los Angeles and said the gang had, in some instances, killed black people purely because of the color of their skin. The extent to which race is driving the area's gang conflicts last year sparked an argument between the region's two top cops, Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca and Los Angeles Police Chief William Bratton. Baca said racial bias was a significant factor in gang crime while Bratton, pointing to statistics showing cross-racial crime to be rare, downplayed any tension.
The investigation of the Varrio Hawaiian Gardens gang has been under way for almost four years since the June 2005 murder of Los Angeles County sheriff's Deputy Luis Gerardo "Jerry" Ortiz. Jose Luis Orozco, a member of the gang, was sentenced to death in 2007 for the killing. Ortiz, 35, died as he searched for Orozco, who had shot and wounded a man while he did yard work. Orozco was later found guilty of attempted murder in that case. "Following the murder of Deputy Ortiz, the Sheriff's Department sought federal and local assistance to help destroy the Hawaiian Gardens gang," the U.S. attorney said. Florencia 13 and Varrio Hawaiian Gardens aren't the only Latino gangs linked to racial attacks. In 2007, four members of The Avenues, a gang from the Highland Park area northeast of downtown Los Angeles, were convicted of hate crimes for killing a black man in what prosecutors called a campaign to drive blacks from that neighborhood. Authorities have also announced a crackdown on the 204th Street gang following the killing of a 14-year-old black girl. Earl Ofari Hutchinson, an author and racial commentator, said racial bias among gang members is high in transitioning neighborhoods where black residents are moving out and Latinos are moving in. "There is a deep-seated animosity between some Latino gangs and African-Americans," he said. "There is no way around it, it is driven by racial animus."

Read more »

Jorge Andrade faces a sentence of life in prison after being found guilty Wednesday of murder

Jorge Andrade faces a sentence of life in prison after being found guilty Wednesday of murder and committing a felony while an active participant in a street gang.
Prosecutors say the 25-year-old Andrade and two fellow gang members kidnapped, then fatally shot 16-year-old Innocente Barrera in August 2004. They say Andrade then ordered that Barrera be left in a car and the vehicle set afire. The two alleged accomplices are awaiting trial.

Read more »

Atkinson and Mitchell both members of the Indian Posse street gang believed rival gang members were selling drugs out of the Mountain Avenue house

A judge has sentenced 28-year-old Riel Mitchell to eight years in prison for the arson death of 14-year-old Nathan Starr. Mitchell, who was originally charged with second-degree murder, pleaded guilty to manslaughter last week in the midst of his preliminary hearing. Starr died of smoke inhalation after the Mountain Avenue home he was staying in was set on fire Dec. 4, 2007. A second accused, 17-year-old Dylan Atkinson, pleaded guilty to manslaughter earlier this year and was sentenced as an adult to seven years in prison. Mitchell claimed -- and the Crown was in no position to disprove -- that he accompanied Atkinson and another male to the home with the intention of confronting or assaulting a man Atkinson said had previously beaten him. Defence lawyer Zaheel Zaman told court Mitchell was intoxicated and "couldn't rule out whether there was a discussion as to an arson happening." "The tragedy cannot be measured here," said Judge Wanda Garreck. "This was a crime fuelled by anger and retaliation ... without care for who was home at the time." Mitchell was given double credit of 35 months for time served, reducing his remaining sentence to 61 months. The sentence was a joint recommendation of the Crown and defence. Crown attorney Brent Davidson told court at an earlier hearing the case against Mitchell was weak and circumstantial and that Mitchell stood a good chance of being acquitted had the matter gone to trial. Atkinson and Mitchell -- both members of the Indian Posse street gang -- believed rival gang members were selling drugs out of the Mountain Avenue house and decided "some sort of message had to be sent," Davidson said. Gasoline was poured on the front porch and set on fire at about 1:30 a.m. Police patrolling the area saw two males running from the home which was quickly engulfed in flames. The fire blocked the only regular exit from the house as the back door was fortified from the inside. Rather than run after the suspects, the officers remained at the house, helping six adults and four children escape through a window. Starr, a visitor to the home, was found lying on a bed in an upstairs bedroom. Paramedics rushed him to Health Sciences Centre, where he was pronounced dead. "Mr. Atkinson and Mr. Mitchell were callous in their disregard for anyone in that house, not just Mr. Starr," Davidson said. "Because the Indian Posse street gang simply wanted to send a message, Nathan Starr is no longer alive."

Read more »

Italian police on Thursday seized millions of counterfeit dollars, an arsenal of weapons and a fake police uniform from a top Cosa Nostra family

Italian police on Thursday seized millions of counterfeit dollars, an arsenal of weapons and a fake police uniform from a top Cosa Nostra family.
They said the operation indicated the clan was gearing up for a war for control of organised crime in the Sicilian capital.Two sawn-off shotguns, a pump-action shotgun, a .357 magnum revolver and thousands of rounds of ammunition were found stashed inside walls in two Palermo homes.
The ten million of fake dollar bills are believed to have been stockpiled by late boss Gaetano Lo Presti to fund a looming war, police said.There have been several recent sweeps that have provided evidence of moves to claim the Palermo throne from the jailed dons once commanded by ex-boss of bosses Bernardo Provenzano.Provenzano was arrested three years ago after 43 years in hiding.
Cosa Nostra is not thought to have elected a supreme boss to replace him but the Palermo post is up for grabs, police say.Thursday's operation was hailed by Anti-Mafia Commission member Carlo Vizzini who said it showed evidence of links with Cosa Nostra in the United States but also ''signs of desperation''.''We want to see poor Mafiosi on the outside and the others in jail under the new toughened high-security regime,'' he said.The former head of the parliamentary Anti-Mafia Commission, Giuseppe Lumia, also praised the police for an ''excellent'' operation.But Lumia, a member of the centre-left opposition Democratic Party, urged the government to crack down harder by making it compulsory for businesses to report Mafia attempts to obtain 'protection' money.He also said police should be able to key into Mafia bosses' bank accounts and other asset records as envisaged by a new European Union directive which Italy has yet to incorporate into law.

Read more »

Arrested 15 members of the Merced Gangster Crips on charges of conspiracy, drug-trafficking, and weapons sales.

Arrested;
- Randy Tyler, 23, of Merced, a suspected leader of the gang,
- Frederick Mays, 21, of Merced also a suspected leader of the gang,
- Lamont Lavell Andres, 35, of Merced;
- Michael Buddy Barret, Jr., 31, of Atwater;
- Eric Devon Beavers, 23, of Merced;
- Antoine Lee Briggs, 27, of Merced;
- Jaray Julius Jaso, 30, of Merced;
- Sudi Dumaka Johnson, 23, of Modesto;
- Jose Ascencio Magana, 24, of Merced
- Patrick McMurray, 22, of Merced
- Lutricia Marie Moore, 23, of Atwater
- Damien Ricardo Perry, 26, of Merced
- Denicio Taylor Ramos, 22, of Merced
- Mckinley Jabree Sims III, 32, of Merced
- Lester Archie Turner, 24, of Merced; and
- Alejandro Joseph Zavala, 28, of Turlock.Arrested 15 members of the Merced Gangster Crips on charges of conspiracy, drug-trafficking, and weapons sales. "For too long, the notorious and violent Merced Gangster Crips have terrorized Merced with their extreme violence, street drugs and powerful weaponry," Brown said. "A member of this gang brutally killed Merced police officer Stephan Gray in a spasm of violence five years ago. Today, we strike a blow against this vicious street gang and help reclaim the streets of Merced."In January, Brown's office initiated a multi-agency investigation into the gang's criminal activity. Posing as a drug dealer, an undercover officer with the San Pablo Police Department was able to gain the confidence of the gang members and was able to obtain nearly a pound of rock cocaine, over 400 ecstasy pills, half a pound of marijuana and three handguns.The five-month investigation concluded with the Merced County grand jury returning a 31-count indictment against 15 members of the Merced Gangster Crips that charged conspiracy, sale of controlled substances - primarily rock cocaine, ecstasy, and marijuana - weapons sales, and criminal street gang enhancements.During the investigation, agents seized 11 1/2 ounces of rock cocaine, seven ounces of marijuana, 448 ecstasy pills, and six loaded handguns.In April 2004, Merced Gangster Crips gang member Cuitliachuac (Toa) Rivera killed Merced Police Officer Stephan Gray during a routine traffic stop. Rivera was later convicted of the murder and received a death sentence."Having prosecuted the MGC gangster who murdered Merced Police Officer Stephan Gray, I know how dangerous this street gang can be. No one, not even members of law enforcement, is immune. This joint investigation has removed some very ruthless individuals from our streets," said Merced County District Attorney Larry Morse.Agencies involved in today's arrests include: the Attorney General's Office Bureau of Narcotic Enforcement Gang Suppression Enforcement Team, the Merced Police Department, Merced Multi-Agency Gang Task Force, Merced Multi-Agency Narcotics Task Force, Madera County Narcotics Enforcement Team, Madera Gang Enforcement Team, West Narcotics Enforcement Task Force, Drug Enforcement Administration, and agents from the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area.

Read more »

Dilun Heng United Nations gang member, who was wanted on a Canada-wide warrant for conspiracy to commit murder, turned himself in

United Nations gang member, who was wanted on a Canada-wide warrant for conspiracy to commit murder, turned himself in to authorities Wednesday.Dilun Heng is charged with conspiring to kill Abbotsford's Bacon brothers and their associates in the Red Scorpions gang, according to a news release.Heng is the last person to be arrested after police announced the charges against eight UN gang members and their associates on Friday.Dilun Heng turned himself in to Vancouver Provincial Court Sheriffs. His surrender means Lower Mainland police have now arrested all five of the alleged gang members wanted on charges of plotting to kill the notorious Bacon brothers.
Heng was considered to be armed and dangerous. Police announced Friday that five additional United Nations gang members or associates now face charges of conspiracy to murder Jonathan, Jamie and Jarrod Bacon as well as their associates.Besides Heng, police named senior UN members Daniel Ronald Russell as well as members or associates Soroush Ansari, Yong Sung John Lee and John William Croitoru.
The four were located and arrested shortly after the announcement.New charges were also laid against three other alleged UN members already in jail – Barzan Tilli-Choli, Karwan Ahmet Saed and Aram Ali, who are accused of plotting to wipe out the Bacons.The new charges are related to the May 2008 killing of a car stereo installer who was driving a Bacon vehicle, police said.Jamie Bacon and other associates are in jail awaiting trial on murder charges in connection with the 2007 "Surrey Six" slayings.

Read more »

Jon Croitoru, a 43-year-old former professional wrestler known as Johnny K-9, who also is allegedly linked to a double-murder

Eight men linked to the United Nations gang have been charged in Canada with plotting to kill members of a rival gang, officials said.The Vancouver Sun reported Saturday the men are accused of planning to kill brothers Jonathan, Jarrod and Jamie Bacon of Abbotsford and other members in their Red Scorpion gang.The newspaper reported that five of the gang members were arrested Friday. Among them is Jon Croitoru, a 43-year-old former professional wrestler known as Johnny K-9, who also is allegedly linked to a double-murder and a police station bombing in Ontario.Authorities said U.N. gang founder Clay Roueche, who just pleaded guilty to trafficking charges in the United States, was also involved in the murder conspiracy, but has yet to be indicted.Prosecutor Ralph Keefer said there is evidence to charge Roueche."Before we decide whether it is in the public interest to proceed with a conspiracy charge against Clay Roueche, we want to await the outcome of his drug charges south of the border in Seattle," Keefer was quoted by the newspaper as saying

Read more »

Trial for the leading members and associates of the Aryan Warriors is scheduled to start Monday under heavy security.

Trial for the leading members and associates of the Aryan Warriors is scheduled to start Monday under heavy security.Federal authorities say members of a white supremacist prison gang are expected to disrupt the federal trial of six members and associates who face racketeering charges.A federal judge last week issued an order to allow prosecutors to keep the names and statements of 10 witnesses from the defense until just before they testify. Prosecutors say threats were made against some of the witnesses and the judge ruled that the gang is capable of carrying out the threats.Prosecutors have said the gang was responsible for manufacturing and distributing methamphetamine and marijuana in Nevada prisons and in the cities of Las Vegas, Reno and Pahrump

Read more »

Barrio Azteca Members are said to have been bringing large amounts of cocaine and marijuana into the United States

Barrio Azteca Members are said to have been bringing large amounts of cocaine and marijuana into the United States, crossing it in from Ciudad Juarez. The only thing more surprising than their 3,000 members is the way the gang is organized. "They have structure, they have different ranks. They have different command levels. They have the people that give the orders, and then they have the people that carry out the orders" said Robert Almonte, Executive Director, Texas Narcotic Officers Association.

With titles, such as sergeant and lieutenant it was the arrest of the ring's alleged leader, Jaime Velasco-the so called boss-that may make the most impact in bringing an end to the gang. According to a federal court affidavit Velasco would cross shipments over the bridges, and supply the drugs to alleged distributors, Gualberto Marquez and Raul Cabral. The drugs would then allegedly be sent to lieutenant Jose Montes.

Like a well trained army, there is a unique form of communication used by those involved. In conversations intercepted by authorities the members used food to reference narcotics. In an conversation between supposed drug runner Michael Torres and Marquez, Torres said "I got seven onions from this guy... Ruben lent me seven onions... You want me to put one in the oven?" Marquez's reply according to the document is "put one in the oven, just one." investigators translate that to seven ounces of cocaine, and put one in the oven refers to making crack cocaine. "the hold up because you're going on the experience of the law enforcement officers that are monitoring these conversations, and that's not all you have, they have other evidence that's going to come out in court that's going to coroberate the testimony from the law enforcement experts" said Almonte.The experts say the drugs don't say in town long. According to this investigation, the drugs would enter from Juarez into El Paso, then be transferred to midland more than 300 miles away. From their they would be distributed to other us cities. "There is a potential for violence, so that's something else this investigation did. It removed the potential for violence, by removing this drug trafficking organization from the streets of El Paso" said Almonte. Federal officials are still looking for Michael Torres. Those already arrested are scheduled to make their first federal court appearance Monday morning.

Read more »

Three people associated with the Latin Kings pleaded guilty in Lubbock federal court.

Three people associated with the Latin Kings pleaded guilty in Lubbock federal court. Cecily Dominique Juarez admits to conspiracy to distribute cocaine and marijuana. She faces up to life in prison. Eliseo Perez also pleads guilty to conspiracy to distribute cocaine and marijuana. He faces as much as life in prison. And Hiluterio Chavez admits to being a felon in possession of firearms. Chavez had a small arsenal, 14 handguns, some of which were stolen. Court records say it was his job to collect and distribute firearms to other gang members. He faces up to 25 years in prison. All three will be sentenced at a later date.

Read more »

Satan Disciples street gang and were “out hunting for some Latin Kings to kill’’

Joshua Wheaton, 22, of the 8900 block of South Richmond Avenue in Evergreen Park was charged with two counts of aggravated assault to a police officer with a firearm and two counts of attempted first-degree murder, police News Affairs Officer John Mirabelli said.Four men are expected in court later Monday charged in three separate police-involved shootings that occurred Sunday on the Southwest, Near West and South sides.Adam Hurtado, 21, of the 5900 block of South Fairfield Avenue, was also charged with two counts of attempted first-degree murder, Mirabelli said. Wheaton is suspected of pointing a weapon at police and Hurtado is suspected of driving the vehicle they used during the early morning shooting in the 5400 block of South Homan Avenue, police said early Monday.On-duty officers witnessed a man firing a gun on the street about 2:20 a.m. Sunday, at which time Wheaton allegedly turned and pointed his weapon at responding officers, police said.An officer discharged his weapon, striking Wheaton. He was taken into custody and transported to an area hospital in "stable" condition, according to News Affairs. No other injuries were reported in the incident and a weapon was recovered on the scene, police said.
Police said early Monday that Hurtado and Wheaton allegedly admitted they are affiliated with the Satan Disciples street gang and were “out hunting for some Latin Kings to kill’’ when the incident occurred.The Independent Police Review Authority is investigating the shooting, spokesman Mark Payne said. Wentworth Area detectives are also investigating the Homan incident.In a separate incident on the Near West Side that occurred about 1:30 p.m. Sunday at 1409 S. Throop St., Samuel McClain allegedly pointed a gun at police and police officers fired at him, but did not strike him, police said. McClain, 29, of 1200 block of West 14th Street, was arrested and charged with aggravated assault to a police officer in the Throop incident, which is being investigated by Harrison Area detectives and the IPRA.
In a third unrelated police-involved shooting that occurred Sunday morning on the South Side, Derrick Carr was charged with allegedly pointing a .25 caliber weapon at an on-duty police officer at 8004 S. Union Ave., according to police.
The officer fired, but did not strike Carr, of 8000 block of South Emerald Avenue, according to police, who said Carr was arrested shortly after the incident at 11:12 a.m. at 8010 S. Union Ave. The shooting is being investigated by Calumet Area detectives and the IPRA.Exact charges against Carr were not immediately available.

Read more »

UN was founded by Clay Roueche, 34, and several friends in the Fraser Valley in May 1997

UN was founded by Clay Roueche, 34, and several friends in the Fraser Valley in May 1997 and now numbers about 100 members.Insp. Kevin Hackett said the UN is also “closely aligned with other groups in different regions of the country and major centres.”The UN also has national and international connections. The U.S. alleged the gang purchased its own aircraft for cross-border drug runs and was making connections to purchase cocaine directly from Colombian cartels.Kiloh said that like other crime groups, it is no longer “capsulated” and will contract out services like transporting or collections to other gangs with those specialities.
“The network of all the different criminal groups cross over on a regular basis,” he said. “All these groups at different times will rely on other groups.”
But the UN is most distinguished by the violence it has wreaked.“This particular group is, in our view, one of the highest level creators of violence in this area,” Kiloh said. He said the conspiracy to murder the Bacon brothers and associates involves a series of incidents, but would not be specific.The indictment says the conspiracy unfolded between Jan. 1, 2008 and Feb. 17, 2009 in Vancouver, Burnaby, Surrey and Montreal. Other than those charged and Roueche, a mysterious character “known as Frankie” is also mentioned as an unindicted co-conspirator.
“There are numerous attempts, multiple incidents that we would allege have occurred,” Kiloh said of the charge.He said the charges will no doubt be a blow to the UN, but not necessarily its demise.“You can’t take out one part of a large organization and anticipate that the organization won’t continue,” he said. “We believe the gang lifestyle is likely to stay here in Canada. It has stayed everywhere else it has been in the world. It is about how we try to minimize that threat.”

Read more »

Ranza Club Three were taken to hospital after they were attacked as they drank

Two cars pulled up outside the Ranza Club in Royston Road at about 1930 BST on Saturday. The occupants entered the pub and attacked customers. Three men were taken to hospital after they were attacked as they drank in a bar in Glasgow at the weekend.The injured men, aged 58, 55 and 49 were taken to Glasgow Royal Infirmary.
Police said were keen to trace a distinctive lime green Audi they believe was one of the cars involved in the incident. The 49-year-old man was later discharged following treatment. The other two men remained in hospital although their injuries were not thought to be life-threatening. The cars involved were described as a silver coloured Vauxhall Vectra or Astra and an older lime green coloured car, thought to be an Audi. The occupants of the cars were all men, in their early twenties and were wearing hooded tops. "Three men have been left badly injured in this attack and it is imperative we trace the people responsible. "There are shops nearby and I would appeal to anyone who may have been in the area at the time of the attack or who may have noticed the cars to contact us as a matter of urgency. "

Read more »

Gang-related incident Molotov cocktails were thrown into four homes in Salinas

Molotov cocktails were thrown into four homes in Salinas on Thursday night and Friday morning in an alleged gang-related incident, according to police.The first incident occurred just before midnight Thursday when suspects threw incendiary devices into a home in the 700 block of Garner Avenue, police said.Just after midnight Friday, more Molotov cocktails were thrown into three different homes in the 900 block of Acosta Plaza, police said.In both cases, the devices caused minor damage to the home and injured no one.

Read more »

Pickering Bodies are suspected to be that of Indo-Canadians

Bodies of two men were found in the trunk of an abandoned car in rural Pickering, killings with all the hallmarks of a gang hit. The bodies are suspected to be that of Indo-Canadians as a car full of Indo-Canadian men from Brampton paid a visit to the crime scene with one of the men saying in accented English that his brother had been missing for a while and he suspected one of the dead to be the missing man.
"Our brother, he's been missing for the last two days, right?" said an Indo-Canadian man, who didn't identify himself.
It's not clear yet if the family members are related to either of the dead men, Durham Det. Mitch Martin said.
"The act doesn't appear to be random to me," Martin said, trying to calm fears of residents in the rural area.
But although it appears the two victims were targeted, Martin didn't elaborate on the killings, saying the investigation is in its early stages.
"We're looking for suspects, we don't have anybody in custody," he said.
Detectives wouldn't confirm or deny reports the victims were shot and beaten, or comment on a motive in the region's second and third murders of the year
But there was "trauma on both bodies," Martin said.
The bodies, one of a Peel resident and the other whose hometown hasn't been revealed, were found around 4:30 p.m. Tuesday after an area resident reported a vehicle parked on Rosebank Rd., just north of Taunton Rd.
The Ottawa Valley plays a role in the investigation, sources said.
Other GTA police and the OPP are assisting in the investigation, Durham Police spokesman Dave Selby said. Traces of blood were found next to the car. Martin wouldn't confirm reports that the car was a rental from Toronto. Autopsies are expected to be performed today on the bodies that were kept in the vehicle as it was taken away for forensic examination.

Read more »

18th Street gang members have been charged in the stabbing death of 15-year-old Dennys Guzman-Saenz

Twenty-two-year-old Francis Artiga-Cardoza, of Manassas, was arrested in Worcester, Mass., early Tuesday morning. Hours later, police arrested 17-year-old Ana Villatoro in the District. The pair, along with seven other suspected 18th Street members, are charged with first-degree murder, kidnapping and armed robbery.Two more suspected 18th Street gang members have been charged in the stabbing death of 15-year-old Dennys Guzman-Saenz in a Gaithersburg park, Montgomery County police said.Police say the 18th Street gang members abducted Guzman-Saenz from a Hyattsville bus stop Jan. 18., believing he was a member of arch rival gang MS-13.Guzman-Saenz was found Jan. 19 in Malcolm King Park, stabbed about 40 times. An anonymous tip led police to his accused killers.

Read more »

Daniel Johnson a member of the notorious Doddington Gang, pleaded guilty to five counts of possession of firearms.

Daniel Johnson a member of the Doddington Gang, pleaded guilty to five counts of possession of firearms. He was jailed for six years at Manchester Crown Square Court. On 2 February 2007, members of the rival gangs Doddington and Gooch were involved in a shoot-out on Wilcock Street in Moss Side, described during a recent court case as being like a scene out of Wild West movie.A number of guns were fired and during the police investigation, searches of nearby homes were carried out. During a search of a house on Pepperhill Road, police found a number of bags under sheds in the back garden that contained more than 100 rounds of small arms ammunition, three 120-gauge shotgun cartridges, two silencers and an empty magazine.
As a result of recovering this arsenal, further raids were executed at the homes and gardens of known gang members in the Pepperhill and Wilcock Street area, leading to the discovery of two loaded Baikal handguns and another silencer.One of the guns and the silencer was recovered near to Johnson's home. During the investigation, a witness was identified who was placed on the Witness Protection Programme and given anonymity in exchange for giving police information that helped identify Johnson as the man who was hiding these bags under the sheds on Pepperhill Road. Detective Constable Roy Storey, from GMP's Major Incident Team, said: "The ammunition and guns we recovered amounted to a small arsenal and came at a time when Greater Manchester was experiencing a number of tit-for-tat shootings."In recovering these guns, we undoubtedly stopped someone from being shot and killed. Johnson was an active member of the Doddington Gang and is a very dangerous man. "Both these guns were used in a number of non-fatal shootings and the likes of Johnson - who was prepared to store these lethal weapons - caused law-abiding members of the Moss Side community to live in fear during that period. "But what today shows is the dramatic strides we have taken towards removing guns from our streets and making them a much safer place to live. In recent weeks, GMP put several gang members responsible for supplying guns behind bars for more than 200 years, and Johnson's case shows that we continue to pursue those who gave Manchester the unfair 'Gunchester' label back in 2007 where they belong - in jail. "The information we received from the public was crucial - in particular the witness who courageously came forward. This witness was praised by the judge for their public-minded spirit and I hope this reassures and encourages members of the community who are worried about criminality in their area that if they do have information, it will be treated in the strictest of confidence, we can protect them and we will bring gun-runners to justice."

Read more »

Regional anti-gang task force has arrested eight reputed members of the United Front gang.

Regional anti-gang task force has arrested eight reputed members of the United Front gang.Armed with search and arrest warrants, local, state and federal law enforcement authorities began Thursday morning rounding up the reputed United Front leaders, member and associates.All but two individuals — a 17-year-old boy wanted for distribution of cocaine and 23-year-old Dione Neves — were arrested. Police seized cocaine, marijuana, prescription pills and drug paraphernalia.Five reputed United Front members who were named in federal indictments detailing the gang's history of drug dealing, shootings and street violence were already in custody on other drug and firearm charges.During a press conference Thursday at the Bristol County District Attorney's Office, task force members commented on the two-year investigation that targeted two of the city's neighborhood gangs."This is the most violent group of individuals in the city of New Bedford," said U.S. Attorney Glenn MacKinlay, accompanied by more than a dozen detectives, prosecutors, police officials and politicians."We deem them to be violent gang members and we're using the federal and state drug laws to put them in custody," MacKinlay said.Thursday's sweep followed a yearlong investigation of the United Front gang that was spearheaded by the FBI and the Southeastern Massachusetts Gang Task Force.The investigation began in April 2008, around the time that the Monte Park probe was winding down. In that case, 22 reputed Monte Park affiliates were charged with drug dealing and firearm charges.In 2007, the task force targeted the Latin Kings, who controlled large segments of turf in the near North End. Thirty alleged Latin King members and associates were arrested.FBI Special Agent Warren T. Bamford said the task force is "committed" to the New Bedford region."This is a team that's here to stay."As in the prior stings, investigators who worked the United Front case used cooperating witnesses — wearing hidden cameras equipped with audio — to purchase varying amounts of crack cocaine from the defendants named in the federal indictments.Detectives also gained access to the suspects' MySpace pages, submitting in their affidavits online pictures that the suspects had posted of themselves flashing the "W" — West Side — hand sign.The following reputed United Front members were federally indicted for distribution of cocaine: Tyson Britto, 24, John "Boogs" Burgos, 30, John C. Burgo, 22, Aaron Livramento, 24, Dione Neves, 23, Michael Vega-Cruz, 21, Shameka Clement, 25, and James Miranda, 42.Terrell Baptiste, 23, also was indicted. He was in custody, having been arrested earlier in the investigation at a stash house on Jean Street. Last March, authorities seized a half-kilo of crack, a .40-caliber handgun, ammunition, $5,000 in cash and a police scanner.
Two teenage boys — both over 17 but juveniles at the time of the alleged offenses — and three adults were arraigned in New Bedford District Court on charges of cocaine distribution.Felicia Almeida, 35, Manuel Rebeiro, 19, and Dwight Majette, 31, were charged in District Court.Rebeiro was arrested last November with another reputed Monte Park gang member for allegedly robbing a man at gunpoint and then shooting at him when the victim tried to chase after them in his vehicle.

According to court records, Rebeiro was a drug runner at the United Front housing projects. He allegedly sold a "burn bag" — containing fake crack cocaine — to a confidential informant last year.All of the federally indicted suspects are in custody except Neves, who escaped in a vehicle when a state police trooper approached him Thursday morning. The trooper was on foot when he first confronted Neves, who was in his car and immediately fled. Neves remained at large Thursday night.In addition, when police arrived to execute their search warrant, Tyson Britto allegedly tried to discard a moderate amount of white powder cocaine from his apartment window. However, the cocaine fell near the feet of law enforcement officials who were outside the residence.The investigation's stated principal goal was to break the cycle of retaliatory violence.The United Front — also referred to as West Side — and Monte Park gangs are fierce rivals. Police say both groups are responsible for a series of retaliatory shootings and homicides over the past several years.According to an affidavit filed in U.S. District Court, 55 of 136 fatal and non-fatal shootings from 2006-08 occurred in the area of United Front or Monte Park.
The alleged revenge shootings usually are committed against any random gang associate seen in the rival's territory without any prior planning or targeting of specific individuals, police said.Citing statistics that show fewer shootings and homicides in the past two years, New Bedford Police Chief Ronald E. Teachman said the gang arrests also have a "calming effect" on the city's neighborhoods."These arrests will put a major dent on the United Front gang's operation," Bristol County District Attorney C. Samuel Sutter said during Thursday's press conference.
The gangs finance their operations through dealing drugs that they obtain from states beyond Providence, the known source for many of the narcotics, especially heroin, that come into SouthCoast, police said.MacKinlay said the task force is investigating the gangs' drug supply, indicating the network extends south of New York and New Jersey.In addition to the drug network, investigators hope the gang roundups will help shed light on several unsolved homicides in New Bedford.The federal affidavit includes a partial list of murders that investigators say are connected to the gang violence. They include: Dana Haywood in July 2005; John Burgos in May 2006; Bernadette "Bunny" Depina in May 2006; and Antonio Semedo in June 2006.
The last gang-related murder in New Bedford occurred when William "Buddha" Payne was gunned down in the South End on Feb. 3, 2008. Payne was considered a leading member of United Front.That murder and several others — including Pina, who was killed in bed days after her son was arrested for the Burgos homicide — remain unsolved. Sutter said he was hopeful that Thursday's arrests would help detectives obtain new information to solve those cases."This is going to help," Sutter said

Read more »

Curlew Devon Moulton, 35, aka Skellion and Tall Man,alleged Toronto gang member arrived in bloodsoaked bandages to seek medical treatment

Toronto Police officers from 31 Division were called to interview gunshot victim Curlew Devon Moulton, 35, aka Skellion and Tall Man, at Humber River Regional Hospital on April 22, a day after he returned from Jamaica. won't be charged by police after flying to Canada in bloodsoaked bandages to seek medical treatment hours after being shot in a gunfight in Jamaica that left one man dead.
Moulton, a Canadian citizen who's well known to Toronto Police, is reportedly a member of the Boys in the Woods gang in North Etobicoke. Moulton was shot several times in his foot April 21 in a gunfight outside Kingston, Jamaica, police said.
One man was killed in what Jamaican police call an "unsolved drive-by shooting." Moulton placed bandages on his wounds and boarded a flight to Pearson airport, where he was detained for two hours by Canada Customs agents and then released, officials said. No charges were laid. Const. Tony Vella said police were called by hospital staff because the patient was a gunshot victim. "We responded to the hospital regarding a person who was shot," Vella said yesterday. "The person was interviewed by our officers." No charges were laid since the man appeared to be a victim in the shooting, Vella said

Read more »

Black Guerrilla Family is one of the most notorious gangs in Baltimore, and they're known for running their outside operations from prison.

Verdict in a murder case involving an alleged member of the Black Guerrilla Family gang. In recent weeks, police have arrested more than two dozen BGF members in a major crackdown on the gang. Black Guerrilla Family is one of the most notorious gangs in the city, and they're known for running their outside operations from prison.Drug trafficking, violence, witness intimidation. Authorities say they're synonymous with the gang BGF, whose members only gain rank in prison and use contraband cell phones behind bars to run crimes through associates on the outside.
"As gangs have grown in stature in Baltimore, so has BGF's stature on the streets of Baltimore," said Police Commissioner Fred Bealefeld. "Gangs really are the gathering storm for Baltimore."Recently, one BGF member was charged with trying to kill a witness in the case of former City Councilman Ken Harris. Another alleged member--who jurors just found guilty of murder--is accused of brazen witness intimidation during the trial.WJZ's newspaper partner The Baltimore Sun reports while in the courtroom, he told a witness, "I know your name. You're going down. You're going down."It led to the rare step of jurors meeting privately with the judge after, reportedly feeling frightened for their safety.But much of what Eyewitness News has learned about BGF comes from wiretapped conversations released by federal authorities who searched homes across Baltimore and indicted two dozen members last month."We hope we'll send a message to inmates that if they're talking on a cell phone in jail, there's a fair chance authorities are listening in," said U.S. attorney Rod Rosenstein.Federal prosecutors allege BGF members recruit correctional officers to help them smuggle drugs in prison, along with those cell phones."We're going to come after you and we will sustain our effort in disrupting and dismantling these types of organizations," said Ava Cooper-Davis with Drug Enforcement Agency.BGF is bold. Police questioned dozens of members last month who met openly in Druid Hill Park. Federal indictments allege BGF members "were smuggling champagne and Grey Goose vodka into the MTC."The feds say members in prison used cell phones to order hits on people who interfered with the gang's lucrative drug business.Federal prosecutors say BGF members are increasingly trying to take over the drug trade in Baltimore.

Read more »

Juggalo movement: Modesto Family Klowns, Psychopathic Criminal Klowns, Juggalo Rider Bitch, Down 2 Party and Nothing 2 Lose.

Stanislaus County Superior Court Judge Dawna Frenchie Reeves said defendants Brandon Ferrell, 18, Joshua Huggins, 17, Kurt Petersen, 22, and Larry Williams, 20, will have to return to the county lockup if they cannot post bail when they are arraigned May 22.Four young men suspected of assaulting a man in Graceada Park and who share an interest in an underground band called Insane Clown Posse must stand trial as members of a criminal street gang that authorities call Juggalos, a judge said Friday.Prosecutors allege that the men are gang members, rather than fans of a band whose lyrics are so raw they wouldn't be heard on mainstream radio, because they travel in a pack, share a common sign or symbol -- the cartoon hatchetman associated with the Detroit-based band -- and commit crimes. Defense attorneys say their clients are just young men who got drunk and behaved badly. The judge said there is enough evidence of gang affiliation to let a jury decide the matter.
"I am disturbed by the level of violence displayed by these young men on March 7," Frenchie Reeves said as she set bail for Ferrell, Huggins and Petersen, who have no records, at $90,000, and bail for Williams, who was convicted of assault as a juvenile, at $125,000.The defendants were released on their own recognizance in the midst of a four-day preliminary hearing last month because of a technicality. They invoked their right to a speedy trial before a prosecutor's scheduling conflict prompted a temporary suspension of the proceedings.Defense attorneys objected to the bail order, saying the previous custody ruling should not be reversed unless their clients violate the terms of their release. The defendants have come to court as required and have not gotten into trouble since they left jail and Juvenile Hall last month.Huggins, a minor, is being tried as an adult.The judge said she will order bail as soon as a prosecutor files formal charges, because there was no provocation for an assault on William August, 53, who was strolling in Graceada Park about 9 p.m. on a Saturday with his girlfriend and daughters, ages 17 and 11.
According to witnesses, Petersen ran up to August, asked to shake his daughters' hands, received a rebuff because he made the family uncomfortable, then returned about 10 minutes later with his friends, who toppled August and kicked him, breaking his leg in two places.The defendants, along with another man who has not been charged, were pulled off August by other Juggalos.A police officer told the court that fans of Insane Clown Posse have been hanging out in the park on weekend nights in recent months.If some of the Juggalos have formed a street gang, their presence remains small. Authorities have documented 38 Juggalos as gang members countywide. The district attorney's office could point to only four juvenile cases since 2001 in which people claiming to be Juggalos committed crimes.A gang investigator told the court about five local groups associated with a nationwide Juggalo movement: Modesto Family Klowns, Psychopathic Criminal Klowns, Juggalo Rider Bitch, Down 2 Party and Nothing 2 Lose.She could not place the defendants in any of the groups, nor could she say if the defendants' gang had a name other than Juggalo. She said some of the defendants have posted photos of themselves throwing hand signs for WC, or "wicked clown," on social networking Web sites.The defendants promised not to engage in any Juggalo activities, such as painting their faces in crazy clown makeup or hanging out in the park. They left the courthouse and avoided August, who attended the hearing and declined to comment.Defense attorneys said the young men have regrets.

Read more »

Terrance Mack, 30, was convicted in connection with the September 2007 stabbing and beating death of Latasha Shaw.

Terrance Mack, 30, was convicted in connection with the September 2007 stabbing and beating death of Latasha Shaw. Officers said a group of people attacked Shaw in Rochester after she confronted some women who assaulted her daughter earlier in the day. Mack is scheduled to be sentenced on June third. His cousin, Ebony Mack, is charged with Shaw's murder. Her trial begins in July.A witness to the attack identified Terrance Mack as being in the crowd when Shaw was killed, testimony prosecutors say was key to the case."Her identification of the defendant was solid," said Monroe County Assistant District Attorney Sandra Doorley. "She had the opportunity to see him before hand, she saw him clearly during the fight as she he was the forerunner, he was the one leading the gang, she could clearly see his face and the jury relied on that testimony obviously."Shaw's father Robert Grayson says he's happy with the outcome. "I'm very happy with the verdict. I'm feeling a little better but I'll feel better when I find out what's going on with the sentence that he's going to get." Mack is scheduled to be sentenced on June third. His cousin, Ebony Mack, is charged with Shaw's murder. Her trial begins in July.

Read more »

Norteño gang leaders immediately issue "green lights" for the assault or execution of any dropout

Two reputed Norteño gang members were ordered to stand trial Friday for allegedly stabbing a gang dropout more than 20 times and fatally shooting his brother at a party April 25, 2008. According to testimony at a preliminary hearing Friday, Jose Carranza, 22, attacked former gang member Andre Garcia, 45, in an Archer Street apartment, breaking a beer bottle over his head and yelling "This is for all D.O.s (dropouts)" as he repeatedly stabbed him in the abdomen. Three or four men then set upon him. As pandemonium broke out, Salinas police testified, Garcia's brother, George, 49, ran from the scene into the street. There he was confronted by Rene Ortiz, 22, who shot him at least 10 times. Friday's testimony was based largely on statements by two young women, identified in court as RH1 and RH2, who told police they saw the attacks from the apartment balcony. Carranza's defense attorney, Romano Clark, said the witnesses' statements were unreliable because they refused to fully identify anyone at the party — including their cousin — other than his client and Ortiz. He said their statements contradict accounts by Andre Garcia. Clark presented testimony from district attorney's investigator Chuck Hahn, who said Andre Garcia told him two weeks after the assault that he had been attacked by someone called "Sopes" and that Carranza, whom he had known since the suspect was a child, was not involved. Clark also submitted evidence, agreed to by prosecutor Christine Harter, that Andre Garcia told a Salinas police officer at the scene of the attack that he and his brother had been "jumped" by young Norteños who lived in a blue house on Buena Vista Street, not in the apartment, which belonged to Carranza's girlfriend. Clark and Ortiz's defense attorney, Bud Landreth, argued there was no evidence linking either man to the other's alleged crime, so they should not both be facing murder and attempted murder charges. On cross examination by Harter, Hahn said Andre Garcia told him he had been pressured by his wife to change his story about Carranza's possible involvement because they both feared for their family's safety. Harter called gang experts who testified that Norteño gang leaders immediately issue "green lights" for the assault or execution of any dropout because those who truly leave the gang seek protection by providing incriminating information to law enforcement. Gang members who do not act on a green light when a dropout is seen can be disciplined, officers testified. Police testified they found evidence of gang membership on both suspects, including rap lyrics written by Carranza, professing to be a "Northern Cali soldier" who will "stick you in the gut and have you crawling on the floor cause there's a green light." Harter said one of the women who talked to police said she saw Ortiz join Carranza in attacking Andre Garcia. Harter said the stabbing victim's blood was on Ortiz's sweatshirt. Carranza should be held responsible for George Garcia's killing, she said, because it was inevitable that gang members would eliminate any witnesses to a stabbing. Noting that the standard of proof is much lower at a preliminary hearing, Judge Russell Scott ruled there was sufficient evidence to hold the pair on all charges, as well as gang and weapons enhancements. He set arraignment for May 27. It was the second preliminary hearing for Carranza and Ortiz. Judge Adrienne Grover found sufficient evidence to hold them for trial in December. Harter was forced to dismiss the case and refile it when the defendants refused to waive their speedy-trial rights to accommodate her pre-planned vacation.

Read more »

Rick Freeman 23-year-old Beloit man is sentenced to life in prison

Rick Freeman 23-year-old Beloit man is sentenced to life in prison after being found guilty by a jury of a 2005 gang-related shooting death.
According to the Rock County District Attorney's office, Judge James Daley also sentenced Rick Freeman to five years in prison followed by five years extended supervision for three counts of second degree reckless endangerment. Those charges stem from an incident in 2007 where Freeman attempted to elude a Beloit police officer and collided with another car. Freeman is sentenced to an additional ten years in prison followed by five years supervision for his conviction of possession with intent to deliver cocaine. That was a second offense and within 1,000 feet of a school.As a result of these cases, Freeman will be eligible for parole in 45 years.

Read more »

Seattle's gang feuds two 16-year-old boys were shot in the back, including one who had been involved in a gang intervention and prevention program.

Two 16-year-old boys were shot in the back, including one who had been involved in a gang intervention and prevention program. The shooter hasn't been caught.Seattle's gang feuds have been heated for more than a year. Seattle police are preparing new measures to quell the violence, and have formed communication channels to try to prevent retaliations shootings.Last month, the department started a day-shift gang squad. Interim Police Chief John Diaz told Seattlepi.com that some of the resource officers added this year to Seattle schools will transition to working in the precincts this summer.Though he didn't give specifics, Diaz also said the department also has been setting money aside for overtime preparing for summer focus areas in each precinct -- something done in response to the gang issue."We definitely have to have more on those Friday and Saturday nights, but … throughout the week we want to make consistent that we have ongoing emphasis in different areas," he said. "Once school's out, you're going to have to make sure that you're staying on top of it.
Though police didn't discuss what prompted Tuesday's shooting, signs show possible links to previous incidents.On Friday, one man was wounded in what police called a gang-related shooting near Alki Beach. Last month, charges were filed in two alleged gang-retaliation shootings that left one dead and two wounded."This winter, they kept on going in between snowstorms and there are still a lot of kids out there with guns, unfortunately," said Gabe Morales, a local gang expert who works with police and at-risk youths. "This is not anything new, it's ongoing."The new measures by Seattle police are intended to prevent a repeat of last year, in which officers linked nine of 28 Seattle homicides to gang violence. Officers said all four juvenile homicides in the city were gang-related.Nearly four hours after Tuesday's double shooting on Rainier Avenue South, a 19-year-old man was caught with a handgun about 10 blocks from the shooting scene as he was walking with a witness to the incident.He allegedly told police his "brother had been shot earlier" and that he was "going to the hospital," according to a police report. Police said the young man had purchased the gun earlier that day for $120.He was arrested and booked into King County Jail after also being caught with what police suspected was crack cocaine and Ecstasy. The teen, who has multiple guilty pleas as a juvenile, told police he was convicted of a juvenile felony. He was last booked into King County Jail in October for illegal gun possession, a violation of his juvenile parole.
The man "claims South End" and associated with known Crips gang members, according to the report. He remained in King County Jail on Thursday and is expected to be charged Friday.However, he has a different last name from the two teens shot in the back early Tuesday evening, and police spokeswoman Renee Witt could not confirm if his brother was one of the victims.Evidence of a South Seattle feud with Central District gangs is widespread, even showing up last month as graffiti in the Douglass-Truth Branch of the Seattle Public Library.
On April 14, police said five members of the Deuce Eights -- a main Central District gang -- were involved in a drive-by shooting on Rainier Avenue South that was said to be retaliation for a shooting early that day in the Central District.A 21-year-old and a 24-year-old man were in front of an apartment in the 7400 block of Rainier Avenue South when one of the alleged Deuce Eights -- who has a felony conviction for unlawful firearm possession -- opened fire on the men, including one who he thought shot at him earlier that day. The 21-year-old suffered a non-fatal wound to his biceps.The alleged shooter, 16-year-old Cleden Theend Jimerson, and the alleged driver, Alias Lasean Grihm, have been charged in Superior Court with first-degree assault. A 14-year-old who police say was in the car was charged as a juvenile with illegal gun possession.Eight days later on the same block, police responded to gunfire outside the apartment of the 24-year-old who the shooters missed.
Police identified him as a member of the 74 Hoover Criminals, a South Seattle division of the Crips gang that is battling the Deuce Eights.Police speculated the shooter, who was not caught, was aiming at the man's residence. The alleged target said little to police, other than that he wasn't a victim that night.On Friday, the 19-year-old shot Friday night near Alki Beach was identified by Gang Unit detectives as belonging to the Holly Park Crips, a group allied with South Seattle gangs, including the 74 Hoover Criminals. Police did not comment Wednesday on whether that shooting was connected to the most recent Rainier Avenue incidents.Also on Tuesday, the Seattle Police Gang Unit responded to a report of shots fired in the Central District. In that case, which appears to be unrelated to the Rainier Avenue incidents, a man was fired upon after an alleged crack deal went bad.
Gang detectives learned the shooter's street name and determined he is associated with a main Central District Gang, the Valley Hood Pirus, according to police.
A problem with mapping gang connections is the changeing allegiances and feuds. Members from gangs who are allies one month could have a problem the following month, Morales said."What we've noticed is that the groups are very dynamic," Tukwila police spokesman Mike Murphy said. "Loyalties change and affiliations changed. It's very hard to predict."Officers say communication between agencies is crucial to a reducing violent gang crime, and has been shown to prevent attacks.
After what police said was a gang-related shooting at the Garfield Community Center in December, police agencies in King County were told to be on the lookout for a suspect with ties to a notorious South Seattle gang.Seattle officers also were advised to stay on the alert for suspicious gang activity due to the increased possibility of retaliation from Central District gang members.The Garfield incident has not been linked to the Hoovers. But Seattle police said communication that night likely prevented a potentially violent situation.Three hours after the December shooting, a Seattle officer recognized six known members of the 74 Hoover Criminals near Rainier Avenue South and South Cloverdale Street -- a stronghold for South End gangs.Police said one of the suspected members, a felon, was found with a loaded .32-caliber revolver in his waistband. The pistol was wrapped in an orange bandanna -- a color used by the street gang."Criminals don't recognize political boundaries," King County Sheriff's spokesman Sgt. John Urquhart said. "We're basically involved in sharing information and occasionally have joint patrols that are very critical."On April 7, less than two hours after a 21-year-old man was shot while working on a car near his South Seattle home April 7, three men approached a Cadillac at South 188th Street and International Boulevard in SeaTac and sprayed the car with at least 20 bullets, according to police.One of the four men arrested allegedly told police the shooting was retaliation for the previous attack. One man died, another was wounded."That's a good example of sharing information," Urquhart said, adding deputies were alerted that afternoon by Seattle police. "Just putting our heads together helped us in both investigations."The four Seattle men suspected in the Sea-Tac shooting were charged with first-degree murder. No suspects have been publically identified in the earlier attack.The communication helps track gang members who can adjust territories within days, police say. Twice a month, Tukwila police have meetings with the Seattle police gang unit -- something also done with other agencies."Years ago we didn't have that and we didn't know what was going on in the next city," Murphy said. "Working collaboratively we've been identifying people, identifying networks."

Read more »

Damario Dilliard member of the Deuce 8 street gang faces a sentence of between 24 ¾ and 33 years in prison

convicted a 20-year-old man of murder and assault for leading an ambush against rival gang members outside a Rainier Valley apartment building two years ago that left a young man dead and at least two others wounded.The jury had deliberated since Monday afternoon before finding Damario Dilliard guilty of second-degree murder and two counts of second-degree assault.He faces a sentence of between 24 ¾ and 33 years in prison. A sentencing date has not been set.Dilliard was arrested several months after the Aug. 28, 2007, attack that killed 19-year-old Antwan Horton and wounded Henry Harris and Kevin Rogers.
Dilliard was a member of the Deuce 8 street gang, while the victims were members of the Low Profile, or LP, gang, according to court documents in Dilliard's case.
At the time of the shootings, the gangs were involved in a bitter and violent feud stemming from the slaying of a founding member of the Deuce 8 gang, allegedly by a member of the LPs, according to documents.The night of the shooting, Dilliard and some of his friends were visiting a woman at the Dakota Apartments on 33rd Avenue South. According to prosecutors, Dilliard was drinking heavily and playing with a pistol when the woman got a call that Horton, Harris and Rogers were going to stop by.The woman told Dilliard and his friends to stay in a bedroom while the LP gang members were over, but Dilliard became agitated by their presence, according to prosecutors. One of his friends called other Deuce 8s to come to the apartment, saying Dilliard was "trapped" inside with LP members.When the others arrived, Dilliard joined them outside, prosecutors said. When the LP members left the apartment, the group opened fire on them. Horton was killed instantly and Harris and Rogers were hit in the legs but managed to escape.Prosecutors say DNA recovered from a pistol left at the scene matched Dilliard's. He was arrested the following January while attending the funeral for 17-year-old Allen Joplin, who was gunned down at a party in the Lower Queen Anne neighborhood. Prosecutors say Joplin was a fellow Deuce 8.Joplin's killers are still at large.

Read more »

Antoine Ahiem, described as a member of the Double ii set of the Bloods street gang, was charged

Antoine Ahiem, 23, of Millville, was arrested along with township residents Ozell Sutton, 26, and Angel Fontanez, 18, police said.Member of the Bloods street gang was charged with numerous drug and weapon offenses Wednesday night after a fight in the Sunbury Village section of town.Officers responded at 8:15 p.m. to a report of a fight on Kinsley Road involving several men with weapons. Several people fled when police arrived, including Ahiem, Sutton and Fontanez. The three men were taken into custody a short time later inside a nearby home they had broken into in order to hide, police said.Further investigation led to the recovery of a backpack that Ahiem is alleged to have placed in a rear shed before hiding inside the home with the other two suspects. The backpack contained a 9mm handgun loaded with hollow-point ammunition, additional rounds of conventional ammunition, a digital scale, Ahiem's driver's license and 45 bags of crack cocaine, police said.The gun was determined to have been stolen in 2008 from a township resident's home. Police said Ahiem is believed to have brandished the weapon during the fight but did not fire it.
No serious injuries were reported from the fight. The cause of the altercation and the number of people involved were not released.
Police said Ahiem, whom they described as a member of the Double ii set of the Bloods street gang, was charged with drug possession, drug possession with the intent to distribute, unlawful possession of a handgun, possession of a handgun while distributing drugs, possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose, possession of prohibited ammunition, receiving stolen property, burglary and possession of drug paraphernalia. He initially was lodged in Burlington County Jail in Mount Holly on $150,000 bail.During Ahiem's first appearance in Superior Court on Thursday, Judge Cornelius Sullivan reduced his bail to $100,000 cash, authorities said.Sutton and Fontanez were charged with burglary and lodged in Burlington County Jail on $35,000 bail apiece, police said.No charges were filed related to the fight. Police said an investigation into the altercation is ongoing.Court records showed that Ahiem also was charged with multiple drug and weapon offenses in August stemming from a drug raid at the Browns Woods Apartments complex on Trenton Road. During the raid, police confiscated a stolen handgun, cash, several bags of marijuana, drug paraphernalia, illegal ammunition and various items of gang paraphernalia.That case is still awaiting trial in Superior Court.

Read more »

Texas Born Hustlers arrested

Big Spring Police have arrested two people they say are known gang members. The Big Spring Narcotics Unit executed a seach warrant at 805 Lorilla on Sunday. Police say two firearms, a bullet proff vest and ammunition were seized. 17-year-old Tristan Ward and 19-year-old Edrion Houston were both arrested and charged with Felon in Possession of a fire arm and body armoor. Both Houston and Ward are known associates of the street gang the Texas Born Hustlers.

Read more »

MS-13 gang member Victor Ramirez sentenced to 60 years in prison

Victor Ramirez of Hyattsville and a native of El Salvador was convicted in November after a monthlong trial. The racketeering enterprise activities included three murders.U.S. District judge has sentenced a MS-13 gang member to 60 years in prison for conspiring to take part in racketeering enterprise activities.
Witnesses testified that Ramirez, 30, entered the U.S. from El Salvador through Mexico, and that he had arrived in Maryland with another gang member. Ramirez and an MS-13 leader from El Salvador told witnesses that Ramirez had been sent to Maryland to strengthen the gang in the state. Prosecutors say Ramirez and other gang members killed shot and killed two rival gang members in October 2005, and Ramirez provided a handgun that was used in the slaying of another man later that month.

Read more »

Pedro Gil, 37, also was known as “Master P” and “Carwash” with the Hermandad de Pistoleros Latinos (Brotherhood of Latin Gunmen) must serve 25 years

Pedro Gil, 37, also must forfeit millions of dollars in real estate, a cache of jewelry, a fleet of luxury vehicles, and suitcases containing $4.5 million in cash.Laredo gang leader must serve 25 years in prison under the terms of a plea agreement, federal prosecutors said Thursday.Pedro Gil, 37, also was known as “Master P” and “Carwash” with the Hermandad de Pistoleros Latinos (Brotherhood of Latin Gunmen).Gil was indicted in May 2008 along with 23 members or associates of the gang. Prosecutors said the gang smuggled large amounts of cocaine across the Mexican border, then stored it in Laredo stash houses for distribution out of Houston.He pleaded guilty in Houston to trafficking more than 330 pounds of cocaine and laundering millions of dollars in proceeds.

Read more »

Raymond Campos, 29, was arrested

Raymond Campos, 29, was arrested. Police said that the Salinas gang member backed over a member of the Monterey County Gang Task Force with his car back on April 10th of this year. Campos was lodged in the Monterey County Jail on numerous charges including attempted murder. No further information available at this time pending a press conference to be held by Chief Fetherolf; date and time to be announced.

Read more »

Anthony Parish D-Boys street gang 40 years in prison

known gang member whom authorities have tied to four shootings was sentenced today for attempted murder.Judge Fran Gull, in Allen Superior Court, sentenced Anthony Parish to a total of 40 years in prison, the result of the Oct. 1 shooting of Andrea L. Terrell as the man sat in a car driven by Patrick Long.Parish, 19, a member of the D-Boys street gang, said in court previously that he was actually gunning for Long when he pulled up alongside the two and opened fire at the intersection of Hessen Cassel Road and Maple Grove Avenue. Parish missed and instead seriously injured Terrell.
Terrell recovered from his injuries.Parish submitted a guilty plea for the crime April 6, resulting in charges of attempted murder and aggravated battery and the dropping of additional charges of battery, criminal recklessness, carrying a pistol without a permit and pointing a gun.Parish got 30 years for the attempted murder and 10 years for the aggravated battery, to be served consecutively.
Today's sentencing was just the beginning of Parish's worries. He has a murder trial scheduled to begin June 23 over the fatal shooting of Antoine J. Woods, 30, whom he is accused of gunning down Aug. 24 outside the Dove Shack Bar on Lumbard Street.Parish also has another attempted murder trial for the shooting of city resident Dennis Salley in August in the 400 block of East Suttenfield Street that will begin July 14.Parish is already serving a 1 1/2 -year sentence after being convicted of criminal recklessness and criminal mischief after he fired two shots into the car of a newspaper carrier near the intersection of Milton Street and South Park Drive in June.Parish was arrested Oct. 10 after a standoff with police in which he barricaded himself in an apartment.

Read more »

Billy Ly and Danny Ngoc Nguyen "kill kits" of weaponry and body armour charged with more than 50 weapons-related offences

Two reputed gangsters arrested with so-called "kill kits" of weaponry and body armour, won't learn until next week whether he'll be free pending trial.Provincial court Judge Les Grieve yesterday reserved his decision on an application to release Danny Ngoc Nguyen on bail. Grieve imposed a publication ban on submissions during the lengthy hearing at the request of defence lawyer John James. James is seeking the same freedom for Nguyen as his co-accused received more than a week ago, when Billy Ly was released on $15,000 cash, or a $25,000 surety. Both Ly and Nguyen were arrested April 1, when police, responding to an unrelated complaint of armed teens in Carburn Park in the Riverbend area, saw a group of five men sprint into a nearby yard. In a silver GMC Safari van, police found a cache of weapons -- including an HK assault rifle and four sets of body armour -- and five sets of clothing changes, including sneakers, track pants, hoodies bandanas and gloves.
At the time police Insp. Richard Hinse said the weapons were "all fully loaded," some in plain view.
Ly, 24, and Nguyen, 22, were charged with more than 50 weapons-related offences, while the other three have been released pending further investigation.

Nguyen remains at the Calgary Remand Centre pending Grieve's ruling.

Read more »

"shoot some Stones," referring to members of a South Side street gang,Witnesses said they saw Ward fire multiple times in Love's direction

Two men were held without bond today after being charged with fatally shooting a teen and wounding two other men in the Austin neighborhood.

The two had shot and killed Damier Love, 16, Thursday as part of a plan to target members of a rival gang operating in the neighborhood, a prosecutor said today.Cortez Powell, 25, of the 700 block of North Lockwood Avenue, and Brian Ward, 22, of the 9500 block of Maple Drive in Rosemont, were each charged with one count of first degree murder and two counts of aggravated battery with a firearm, according to a police news release.Powell also was charged with one count of unlawful use of a weapon by a felon and one count of aggravated discharge of a firearm. The two were ordered held without bond today by Cook County Circuit Court Judge Jackie Marie Portman.Love and two men ages 45 and 53 were standing in front of a liquor store in the 5300 block of West Chicago Avenue around 12:45 a.m. Thursday, when Ward, Powell and a third man who has not been charged approached the store and began firing, said Asst. State's Atty. Emily Stevens at today's bond hearing.Witnesses said they saw Ward fire multiple times in Love's direction, and when the teen fell to the ground, Ward stood over the victim and continued firing, Stevens said. Love, of the 4800 block of West Hubbard Street, was dead on the scene, according to the Cook County medical examiner's office.
The 45-year-old man was shot in the hip and remains in Stroger Hospital after having been stabilized, while the 53-year-old was treated and released for a gunshot wound to the thigh, she said.
Love did not know the two men injured in the shooting, Stevens said. Love apparently was the only target, Police Officer David Banks said earlier this week.After the shooting, Ward, Powell and the other man fled the scene, and Powell was apprehended a short time later by police officers.
Under questioning, Powell said he had met up with Ward and the third man knowing that they were going to "shoot some Stones," referring to members of a South Side street gang, Stevens said. Powell told police he and the other two men were armed, and he fired his gun into the air during the incident.After police apprehended Ward, he told police that he had fired his gun at one of the injured men, Stevens said. Both Ward and Powell were also wearing latex gloves during the incident.Both men had several prior felony charges, Stevens said.Love was a Chicago Public Schools student who was enrolled at Marshall High School, said Chicago Public Schools spokeswoman Monique Bond. She did not know what grade Love was in. Love is the 34th district student killed this year.

Read more »