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Seventeen members of a gang,and associates of the Almighty Latin King and Queen Nation, who authorities say committed gang-related killings

Seventeen members of a gang,and associates of the Almighty Latin King and Queen Nation, who authorities say committed gang-related killings in West Texas, face drugs and weapons charges, according to an 11-count indictment unsealed Thursday.The 17, who are members and associates of the Almighty Latin King and Queen Nation, are charged with conspiracy to distribute and possession with intent to distribute cocaine and marijuana. Three of the defendants were also charged with conspiring to deal in firearms.The indictment also includes drug distribution charges and various firearms charges, including using and carrying a firearm to commit murder during and in relation to a drug trafficking crime, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney's Office.Four of the 17 were arrested Wednesday and Thursday in Midland, Big Spring, Mission, Texas and Chicago. Eleven suspects were already in federal or state custody on related and unrelated charges and two remain at large. The defendants will appear before a federal judge in Abilene on Friday.An affidavit filed in the case says two members of the gang were involved in a drive-by shooting using an AK-47 where a pregnant woman and a man. Four others were wounded. The affidavit says the shooting was ordered against a rival gang.The indictment alleges the group distributed cocaine and marijuana throughout Texas and elsewhere, which they imported from Mexico and South Texas for distribution. The indictment also said some members of the organization may have committed murder, aggravated assault or arson.The indictment was returned earlier this month by a federal grand jury in Lubbock and unsealed Thursday

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