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The Pistoleros Latinos began to multiply in the 1990’s after the gang began recruiting members from cities out side of the Rio Grande Valley. The original HPL members from the Rio Grande Valley resented the new members being recruited from San Antonio and Houston, Texas. A power struggle within the prison gang’s ranks ensued causing the group to splinter into two separate chapters. The original HPL members decided to call themselves the HPL 45’s, while the San Antonio and Houston members were known as the 16/12’s. The two factions went to war and finally reunited under the name HPL in 1998Hermanos de Pistoleros Latinos ( a.k.a., Pistoleros Latinos, or, HPL) is a Hispanic prison gang founded by Joe Mendoza and Alberto Rodriguez in Texas during the late 1980s. The Spanish translation of the gang's name is "Brotherhood of Latin Gunmen." It operates in most prisons and on the streets in many communities in Texas, particularly Laredo. HPL is also active in several cities in Me...

Three New York police officers who killed an unarmed man in a 50-shot barrage outside a seedy strip club hours before his wedding will not face civil rights charges, federal authorities said Tuesday. The parents and former fiancee of Sean Bell, along with the Rev. Al Sharpton, had lobbied federal prosecutors in Brooklyn to charge the officers with violating Bell's civil rights. "After a careful and thorough review, a team of experienced federal prosecutors and FBI agents determined that the evidence was insufficient to prove, beyond a reasonable doubt, that the law enforcement personnel who fired at Bell (and two friends, Joseph Guzman and Trent Benefield) acted willfully," the Justice Department said in statement. "Accordingly, the investigation into this incident has been closed." U.S. Attorney Benton Campbell met with Bell's family members Tuesday to tell them. Guzman, Benefield and Bell's fiance, Nicole Paultre Bell, were to appear at a news confe...

Samuel Isael Ayala, 21, of Corning, had removed a firearm from his vehicle and fired the handgun into the air while standing in a crowd of people in the parking lot, an RBPD release said.The gun was later found in Ayala's vehicle with his passenger Everardo Barragan, 28, of Red Bluff, who had reportedly been involved in a fight in the parking lot. Officers found several packages of cocaine along with ammunition for the firearm found in Ayala's vehicle.Ayala was booked into Tehama County Jail on the charges of discharging a firearm in a gross negligent manner, possession of cocaine, possession of cocaine for sale transportation of cocaine for sale, possession of a loaded firearm with a controlled substance and concealed firearm in a vehicle. Bail was set at $90,000.Barragan was booked on the charges of concealed firearm in a vehicle, possession of cocaine, possession of cocaine for sale and possession of a loaded firearm with a controlled substance. Bail was set at $55,000.

Anthony D. Singh, 21, fired a bullet through a man’s right shoe after a confrontation in a downtown parking lot that police said stemmed from a dangerous culture of retaliation and intimidation common in gang life. A jury convicted Singh of several felonies after a trial in December that included unusual testimony about Singh’s ties to the Rollin’ 60 Crips street gang. Gang affiliations generally are considered inadmissible in trials, but prosecutors argued that Singh’s membership in the violent gang provided motive for the seemingly random shooting, which occurred near a downtown night club in July 2008. “He has chosen this way of life, and it finally caught up with him,” said Superior Court Judge Kathleen O’Connor on Wednesday.Singh’s father, Elvis Anthony Singh, urged O’Connor to show his son leniency in a letter mailed from a federal prison, where he’s been since 2002. He was sentenced to 10 years after federal drug agents busted a crack cocaine ring the quadriplegic was operating ...

‘King of the Hill’ found shot dead in the Cheshire mansion of a controversial businessman Arran Coghlan.Stephen ‘Aki’ Akinyemi, 44, was said to be a prominent member of the notorious Cheetham Hill gang, which is believed to be behind major crime and the supply of drugs in Manchester.He was known for enjoying champagne and cruising Manchester’s clubland in his silver Porsche, with the private registration AKI.He had a string of previous convictions and most recently had been jailed for 13 months in 2006 for violent disorder.At the time of his death, he was on bail for allegedly attacking someone with a baseball bat outside the Lounge 31 nightclub in the city centre in November.He was found with serious stab injuries at Mr Coghlan’s Alderley Edge home on Tuesday afternoon. He was wearing a stab vest.But a post-mortem examination revealed he had died of a gunshot wound, not knife injuries.Mr Coghlan was also discovered with stab injuries at the scene and he was taken to hospital under po...

Julian Jose Garza, 28, of Notus was sentenced to 70 months in federal prison by U.S. District Judge Edward J. Lodge, the United States Attorney’s Office announced Wednesday.Garza pleaded guilty to the charge in September, admitting that he had a 9 mm semi-automatic handgun during a confrontation with two men in Caldwell on May 14, 2008. Because Garza had been previously convicted of firing a gun into an occupied dwelling, he was prohibited from possessing firearms under federal law.Garza is reportedly a member of Caldwell’s East Side Locos gang and was prosecuted by the special assistant U.S. attorney hired by the Treasure Valley Partnership and Idaho State Police to address gang crimes. His sentencing on Tuesday concluded a string of successful prosecutions of Garza’s family and girlfriend, the U.S. Attorney’s Office reports.His father, Gabriel Garza, pleaded guilty to unlawful possession of a firearm and was sentenced to 12 months of prison last March. His mother, Maria Garza, . was ...

gang sweep by local and federal agents in Tacoma. Twenty-nine men, suspected members of the Tacoma Hilltop Crips gang, have been arrested in a series of raid since Tuesday morning. One of the men arrested, Manuel Jose Hernandez, pleaded guilty to the Toews murder in 2000. Hernandez was 12 at the time. He was sentenced to state custody until he turned 21 in October of 2008. Since then, prosecutors say, Hernandez has been an active gang member. He was arraigned Wednesday on charges including: conspiracy, robbery, auto theft and trafficking stolen property. Cornell hopes Hernandez gets a longer sentence this time, but she said it won't do any good for her or Hernandez. "I don't have any great hopes that prison's going to improve somebody's outlook on life," said Cornell. Thirty-two men have been charged in connection with the investigation. Share this article:

Sweep against the Hilltop Crips included serving a series of early-morning search warrants Tuesday. Officers arrested 11 suspected gang members without incident and confiscated guns, drugs and stolen property. Investigators were still searching for five others. The remaining 16 were already in the Pierce County Jail on other criminal charges or serving time in state prison. Prosecutors have filed 51 felony counts in the case. Charges include attempted murder, first-degree robbery and drive-by shooting. The 32 suspected gang members, ages 17 to 38, face various counts, but all are charged with one count of criminal conspiracy, according to court documents. Among those charged are two third-strike candidates and Manuel Jose Hernandez, one of eight youths convicted of fatally beating Erik Toews, 30, as he walked down the street in 2000. “We’ve got a big chunk of the group, and we’re not stopping,” said Steven Dean, assistant special agent in charge of the FBI’s Seattle office. “We are loo...

Valentino Sanchez, 33, whose last known address was 8105 White Ave. in west suburban Lyons, was placed into custody at 12:15 p.m. by Chicago Police in a secure area in a lower level terminal area at O’Hare, according to police. Sanchez, an allegedly high ranking member of the Latin King street gang who also goes by the streets names of “Shorty” and “Devious” was found in Guadalajara, Mexico by an FBI gang task force and was transported by DEA and FBI officials to Chicago, police said. A Feb. 2, 2009 U.S. Department of Justice and FBI release offered a $10,000 reward for the arrest of Sanchez, who has been the subject of nationwide manhunt since July 2005 when he was charged in a criminal complaint filed in U.S. District Court in Chicago with violation of drug laws. The release said Sanchez is allegedly a high ranking member of the Latin Kings and he is accused of overseeing the distribution of wholesale quantities of cocaine in the city and suburbs. Sanchez remains in Chicago police cu...

Dominique Finley, 34, was the highest-ranking member among the defendants with the lofty title “5-Star Universal Elite.” Eric Ollison, 26, who goes by the nickname “Murder,” was his second-in-command, officials say. “They didn’t get the moniker ‘Body Snatchers’ for no reason,” said Chicago Police Deputy Chief Nick Roti of the Organized Crime Section, adding that the faction is suspected of dozens of killings over the years.The charges unveiled Wednesday don’t accuse any of the defendants of murder, but said they were involved in a vast drug business.Since September, though, Ollison has been locked up after he was caught on the West Side with a loaded gun in a car, police said. He pleaded guilty to being a habitual offender and was sentenced to six years in prison, court records show. According to FBI affidavits, the Body Snatchers were peddling large quantities of cocaine north of the Eisenhower Expy., south of North Avenue, west of Laramie and east of Austin. Two informants were paid ...

Suspected of being members or associates of the Four Corner Hustlers street gang. The men were arrested as part of Operation Snatched, a coordinated effort by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies to target street gangs running drug distribution networks in the Chicago area, Grant said.The men were charged with attempted possession or possession with intent to distribute crack cocaine, the FBI said. The charges are felonies and carry a minimum sentence of 10 years in prison if convicted, according to the FBI.Investigators electronically intercepted telephone conversations, used surveillance techniques and conducted undercover missions to investigate the network whose turf went from the Eisenhower Expressway to North Avenue, between Laramie Avenue and Austin Boulevard, officials said.The Chicago residents who were charged were Milton Bills, 32, of the 5800 block of West Ohio Street; Clarence Johnson, 45, of the 700 block of East 50th Street; Terrance C. Jones, 32, of the 140...

first gangland slaying of the year had originated in their district. John Paul 'JP' Joyce, a vicious criminal and member of a heroin distribution gang, had been kidnapped in Coolock on Thursday, January 7, murdered and his body dumped near the airport where it was found two days later. Joyce, aged 30, was involved in a feud with a gang which has been establishing complete control over the drugs trade in an area stretching from the north inner city to north county Dublin and westwards to Ballymun, Finglas and Blanchardstown. It was responsible for murdering Joyce's brother, Thomas, in June last year and John Paul had vowed revenge. John Paul himself had already survived at least two attempts on his life. The two murdered Joyce brothers, members of a settled Traveller family from Grove Lane, were notorious in north Dublin. John Paul was imprisoned for a terrible assault on an innocent man at a public house in Rush, Co Dublin on St Patrick's Day, 2006. The man's son ha...

Ryan Daniel Jones-Adams, 16, was charged with first-degree murder and first-degree murder committed in association with a gang.He is accused of fatally shooting Marvin Ray Maynard III, who was found Jan. 17 in the street on the 2600 block of James Avenue N. Maynard had his hands in the air when he was shot, according to the criminal complaint.A family member who declined to be named said Maynard was not a gang member and referred questions to his mother, who could not be immediately reached Monday.Police are not looking for anyone else in the case, said Sgt. Jesse Garcia, a spokesman.Garcia and the complaint gave this account:A witness who had been with Maynard and another male told police that they had been confronted by three people yelling "T Block" and "BTG," cliques in the Crips gang. Someone in Maynard's group mentioned the Tre-Tre gang.One male in the Crips group took off a skull cap and yelled a threat, the complaint said. The witness saw that the male, ...

Medford Area Drug and Gang Enforcement Team officers arrested Dandre Davaune Parker, 20, on charges of possession, manufacture and delivery of heroin, possession of ecstasy, and manufacture of heroin and delivery of ecstasy within 1,000 feet of a school. He was lodged in the Jackson County Jail, where he remained Thursday evening on $100,000 bail. Acting on a tip that members of the Crips street gang were dealing drugs near Jackson Elementary School, Medford police arrested a man on numerous drug charges Thursday morning.The arrest comes on the heelsof an unrelated investigation that led to three arrests and theseizure of an estimated $40,000worth of heroin and methamphetamine, team supervisor Medfordpolice Lt. Tim Doney said."We suspect Parker is associated with a Crips gang out of Stockton (Calif.)," Doney said.Investigators searched Parker's apartment in the 800 block of Summit Avenue at about 7:30 a.m. Thursday, armed with a warrant based on allegations of gang and dr...

Officers did find three shots were fired in front of 1161 Mazatlan Cir., but were unable to locate a victim.Just after 11 p.m., officers were called to St. Francis Medical Center to investigate a shooting victim. A 20-year-old victim admitted being involved in the earlier disturbance and having an affiliation with the Crip street gang.The victim's injuries are not life threatening.

Bulldogs are described by authorities as the nation's largest independent street gang. Police estimate there are about 12,000 members in this city of 500,000. For most of their 20-year existence, the Bulldogs escaped serious law enforcement scrutiny, even as they taunted cops with barks and howls. Police looked upon them mainly as wayward youth. But the gang that grew out of fights at San Quentin prison over respect eventually showed itself to be a deadly criminal enterprise. The 2006 shooting of a cop became a tipping point. Now police are trying to bulldoze the Bulldogs, before the next generation takes over.The Fresno police are engaged in year four of tactical warfare against the gang, sweeping through neighborhoods and making more than 12,000 arrests, including many juveniles, and even going after petty offenses such as loitering by seeking injunctions.It's called "Operation Bulldog." In other cities, such police pressure might have killed the beast. But with the...

six Florencia 13 gang members life in prison sentence appears to bring to a close a prolonged and terrifying spate of violence in the Florence-Firestone district allegedly brought on by orders from a prison gang member in solitary confinement 700 miles away.Beginning in 2004, the unincorporated Los Angeles County area north of Watts was the site of one of the region's worst gang sieges since the early 1990s, evolving into what some residents felt was a race war.The violence left dozens of people dead, including many with no gang affiliation, and required enormous county resources to combat."Things have gotten a lot better," said Chris Le Grande, pastor of Great Hope Missionary Baptist Church on Compton Avenue in Florence-Firestone. U.S. District Judge David Carter sentenced Florencia member Francisco Flores, 24, to life in prison on Wednesday, saying that he "preyed on victims because they were black and for no other reason," according to a U.S. attorney's o...

four accused - Nicola Ciconte, 54, of Rowville, Michael Calleja, 51, of Kew, Vincenzo Medici, 45, of Mildura, and Carmelo Loprete, 41, of Adelaide - will be tried in absentia in the town of Vibo Valentia in Calabria after a failed attempt by the Italian government to extradite them from Australia.Anti-mafia prosecutor Salvatore Curcio has told The Age the prosecution will use testimony from a Mafia turncoat, whose name has been suppressed, to corroborate phone taps, photographic and video evidence allegedly linking the four to a multimillion-dollar drug smuggling network that stretched from Colombia through Spain and Italy to Australia.According to court documents, the turncoat has confirmed the alleged link between the Calabrian Mafia and what prosecutors have termed ''leading crime figures operating in Australia''. He has told prosecutors the four Australians made several trips to Italy to arrange the shipment of large quantities of cocaine while members of the elite ...

James Bucheger of Oakhurst, is in jail -- accused of breaking into two cabins near Bass Lake. Bucheger told deputies -- he's a Juggalo. The Juggalos claim they're just extreme fans of the band "Insane Clown Posse". But many law enforcement agencies consider them -- a violent street gang. Deputies found the suspect covered in blood at a third home where a party was taking place. The two burglarized homes had smashed windows and blood splattered throughout them.

seven Latin King members were arrested, the FBI said: Rene Ramirez, 27, of Orlando; Ricky Montesino, 26, of Orlando; Frederic Salizan, 28, of Orlando; Kevin Sullivan, 29, of Orlando; Derrick Hester, 21, of Davenport; Rafael Rodriguez, 35, of Davenport; Emilio Rosa, 37, of Davenport.Four others were already in state custody: Jose Santana, 28; Jason Rohena, 22; Jose Garcia, 23; and Vic Melendez, 22.Authorities are still looking for Luis Gelpi, 20, of Park Manor Drive, Orlando. Gelpi is considered armed and dangerous.The Latin Kings are one of the largest gangs nationwide, said Orlando police Sgt. Jose Velez. They’re very well organized, and each city or geographic area has a leader who reports to a nationwide leader. “They are dangerous. They are criminals. They sell drugs. They fight for territories. They threaten people. They shoot people if necessary,” Velez said. “Anytime you can put people like this away, it makes the community a lot safer

Ricardo McKendrick Jr., a Salem County, N.J., resident who has been in jail since his arrest in April 2008, was described as a "dealer's dealer" by U.S. District Judge Gene E. K. Pratter before she imposed a 108-month prison sentence.The term was substantially below recommended sentencing guidelines, and came in response to a government motion that detailed the extent of McKendrick's cooperation.Pratter also had a private, 15-minute sidebar session in the midst of the hearing in which she heard more details about why the prosecution felt a lesser sentence was appropriate. The motion seeking a sentence reduction was filed under seal and is not available to the public.Neither the prosecutor, Assistant U.S. Attorney Leo Tsao, nor McKendrick's lawyer, Brian McMonagle, would comment about the motion or the sidebar session after the hearing.Pratter called the motion "very compelling," but provided no details.Under guideline recommendations, McKendrick, 38, fac...

fatal shooting of a man and his teenage cousin on a Jersey City street corner may have been a gang-related execution.Police found 26-year-old Lester Thompson and 17-year-old Mileak Richardson sprawled face down on the sidewalk at around 4 a.m. Tuesday. Both had been shot in the head.A neighbor reported hearing five shots and a car racing away.Hudson County Prosecutor Edward DeFazio said the attack was "clearly premeditated'' and money may have been taken from at least one of the victims. Authorities are still searching for the shooter

Adrian Ramírez, known as "El Rama" or "12" was killed in a shootout with Mexican soldiers the day after two squads of gunmen massacred 15 students who were celebrating a birthday party. The killings has shocked Mexico, and called into question President Felipe Calderón's war on the violent drug cartels who are fighting for control of profitable routes to the U.S.Police interrogated José Dolores Arroyo, who is accused of being a lookout for the gunmen. Mr. Arroyo told police the gunmen, who worked for the Juárez Cartel, also known as La Linea, believed the students belonged to a rival gang known as the Artistic Assassins who work for Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán, Mexico's most powerful drug lord. Mr. Guzmán has been battling to take over Ciudad Juárez from the hometown Juárez Cartel for the past two years. During that period, violence has spiraled out of control. Last year, more than 2,600 people were killed in drug related violence in Ciudad Juárez, u...

fugitive Bloods gangster with roots in Liberia was captured and charged yesterday with shooting a local man at a homecoming party for a U.S. Marine on upscale Palton Road.Police said Daniel “Rush” Potepa, 20, shot 23-year-old Anshul Rastogi in the arm, hip and pelvis, wounding him gravely. Rastogi was reported in critical condition on a respirator at Aria Health’s Torresdale hospital.According to a probable cause affadavit, the party was held on Jan. 23 for Iraq War returnee Michael Shannon, a Marine who saw Potepa’s gun jam when the suspect pointed it at him and tried to fire.The legal papers also said the shots were fired at the party at the same time Potepa’s ally in the Sex Money Murder wing of the Bloods was smashing liquor bottles and threatening to cut people with the jagged edges.Four Bensalem detectives cracked the case by checking the social networking Internet site Facebook to compile a list of party attendees and see some of their pictures. (Also on Facebook, Shannon recoun...

Juan Palo Lopez Ruiz, 35, of Watsonville was pronounced dead at the scene of the 9:11 p.m. shooting at a residence in the 8800 block of Vista de Tierra Circle, deputies said. A second victim, Fernando Ramirez Ruiz, 35, of Castroville was taken by air to a San Jose hospital, deputies said. Sheriff's units swarmed to the scene to find one of the wounded men lying in the roadway and the second near the entrance of a housing unit, deputies said. Witnesses told deputies that the two men were at a birthday party when "unknown individuals" came up and asked if they belonged to any gangs. The interlopers were told to leave, and they started shooting, deputies said. The shooters were seen leaving the area on foot, deputies said. They shot at a third man but missed, deputies said. Several of the rounds entered residences in the housing complex but no one else was injured, deputies said. The fatal shooting is being investigated as gang-related, deputies said.

Robert Schultz shot Carlton Ewing with a .40 caliber semi-automatic gun on the evening of Aug. 17, which was a Latin King organized "Hood Day," Assistant Cook County State's Attorney Antara Nath said. "Hood Days" are designated days when gang members look for for rival members so "shorties" — or those hoping to join the gang — can target enemies. Ewing did not belong to a gang, Nath said. Ewing, who was wearing a red baseball cap, was traveling in a car with three others in the 9800 block of South Ewing when Schultz's co-defendant Juan Macias yelled out, "GD killers" and motioned for Schultz to fire, Nath said. Schultz, then 17, sprung from the gangway he was hiding in and allegedly shot eight times at the car. One of the bullets went through the truck and hit Ewing in the back, Nath said. The now 18-year-old Schultz, of the 9500 bock of South Avenue L, was arrested on Sunday in Crown Point, Ind. The 5-foot-5 alleged shooter, who goes by ...

Julian Escobar, 24, was arrested Saturday as he drove away from his Pajaro Circle house and will be in court Tuesday to face murder, attempted murder, gang and gun charges, authorities reported.Escobar and another, still unidentified man went to the Apple Hill neighborhood in Watsonville the afternoon of March 21, confronted a group of young men playing basketball on public court and asked what gang they claimed, according to police.Angel Escobedo, 19, and his friends said they weren't involved in gangs. He and the other basketball players fled when gang members pulled a handgun, but Escobedo was shot several times and died.Although police suspect Escobar came to Watsonville to retaliate for a prior incident - which officers are tight-lipped about - Watsonville Police Chief Manny Solano said the gang member was not seeking out Escobedo in particular."This young man was an innocent victim of the terrible, terrible gang crimes we see," District Attorney Bob Lee said. Escobe...

Stephen Marshall, 38, sensationally confessed to the other atrocities He admitted through his barrister that he sliced up and dismembered the victims a decade before he slaughtered his landlord Jeffrey Howe - whose flat he wanted for himself and his hooker girlfriend. At the time the four died he said he was working for North London's most vicious crime family - the notorious Adamses. The cleaver-loving ex-gangster, whose confession stunned detectives, was taken away to begin a life sentence after REFUSING to identify the other corpses. Murder cop Michael Hanlon, who nailed Marshall after kitchen salesman Mr Howe's body parts were found, planned to visit the beast in jail. The Detective Chief Supt, who admitted the confession was a "surprise", confirmed: "Clearly we will seek to interview him further." Police suspect they know who two of the victims were. The FIRST is gangster Gilbert Wynter - an enforcer for the Adams gang. He vanished in 1998 after the fam...

ONE of the country's main criminal gangs has been dealt a major blow after gardai seized €300,000 worth of heroin and arrested a leading member of the outfit. The crime figure was arrested in Limerick by gardai investigating the latest feud-related shooting in the city over the weekend. Officers also recovered a shotgun that was used in the attack.On Saturday evening, during a major search, gardai recovered a major cache of heroin on the Ballysimon road -- four miles from the city. Two men were arrested as part of the investigation, and heroin with an estimated street value of €300,000 was recovered. It is understood the narcotics belonged to the Collopy criminal gang.A 22-year-old man, considered to be a leading member of the gang, was arrested by gardai. He is a well-known criminal in the city and served a prison sentence for drug dealing. The other individual being detained is from Dublin.Meanwhile, detectives from Roxboro garda station were last night questioning a 25-year-old ...