Ralph "Perico" Rocha and Rafael "Cisco" Gonzalez-Mu oz committed what is considered a mortal sin among the ranks of the dreaded Mexican Mafia prison gang: they encroached into the drug territory of a senior gang member.
Their transgression marked them for death according to county prosecutors, who in early December charged six individuals with trying to murder Rocha and Gonzalez-Mu oz on behalf of another "made" Mexican Mafia member, Jaques "Jocko" Padilla. The six, including Padilla's wife, La Puente resident Maria "Lola" Llantada, are in L.A. County Jail awaiting a March 7 court date.
Despite the arrests, Rocha and Gonzalez-Mu oz are likely still in mortal danger; sheriff's officials have confirmed that Rocha was shot last week in the Norwalk area. His injuries were minor, however, and he was treated from a local hospital and released.
Law enforcement investigators and gang associates say the Llantada case, along with a spate of other Mexican Mafia-related cases over the past year, illustrate the influence exerted across vast swaths of the San Gabriel Valley by the prison gang, also known as La Eme. The cases also show that the pilfering of "taxes" on drugs by rival gangs is behind many cases of Eme-related violence, which has plagued the area for decades.
Their transgression marked them for death according to county prosecutors, who in early December charged six individuals with trying to murder Rocha and Gonzalez-Mu oz on behalf of another "made" Mexican Mafia member, Jaques "Jocko" Padilla. The six, including Padilla's wife, La Puente resident Maria "Lola" Llantada, are in L.A. County Jail awaiting a March 7 court date.
Despite the arrests, Rocha and Gonzalez-Mu oz are likely still in mortal danger; sheriff's officials have confirmed that Rocha was shot last week in the Norwalk area. His injuries were minor, however, and he was treated from a local hospital and released.
Law enforcement investigators and gang associates say the Llantada case, along with a spate of other Mexican Mafia-related cases over the past year, illustrate the influence exerted across vast swaths of the San Gabriel Valley by the prison gang, also known as La Eme. The cases also show that the pilfering of "taxes" on drugs by rival gangs is behind many cases of Eme-related violence, which has plagued the area for decades.
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