Further, the indictment describes the appointment by these leaders of NF members to positions of power over hierarchical and paramilitary structures called regiments, imposed on its gang members operating on the streets in California. Copyright 2023 Staff writer Nate Gartrell contributed to this report. The arrests made yesterday, most significantly the arrests of the Nuestra Familia leadership, will severely cripple the ability of this criminal enterprise (and) disrupt the communications and organization structure of a criminal network that has terrorized our neighborhoods for far too long.. Removals are approved in advance by the gang leader in charge of the facility. This organizational structure reinforces the dominance of the master gangs and allows them to take a significant portion of profits from drug trafficking and other criminal activity that takes place at the street level. The trial focused on 10 removals in the Monterey County Jail between December 2012 and April 2014. Lock Membership in the gang extends beyond prison. Nuestra Familia's new leadership General: David "DC" Cervantes Top Commanders: Daniel "Stork" Perez, of Salinas; Anthony "Chuco" Guillen, of San Jose; George "Puppet" Franco, of San Jose Demoted: Jose "Huerito" Gonzalez; James "Conejo" Perez Copyright 2008 Monterey County Herald Copyright 2013 LexisNexis, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. OAKLAND Four members of the Nuestra Familia criminal organization including the top gang leader were sentenced to federal prison today for racketeering, murders, robberies, drug offenses, and related acts announced U.S. Attorney Brian J. . All were indicted for racketeering charges. [23] After months of investigation, at least 37 alleged gang members were arrested during the raids conducted. A small minority within the gang has not transferred loyalty to Cervantes, Santa Cruz County's Morales said. A lock ( Look for a box or option labeled Home Page (Internet Explorer, Firefox, Safari) or On Startup (Chrome). Arizona, Florida,[2] Georgia, Idaho,[3] Nevada,[4] Kansas,[5] New Mexico, Northern California, Nuestra Familia is organized in a military-like hierarchy, with generals running the gang from inside prison and paroled regiment captains running the streets outside. The federal faction didnt approve of the treaty but the state side entered into it anyways, prompting a deep-seated conflict that continues to play out. The Nuestra Familia was not recognized as a prison gang by the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation until 1979. Harriette Cole: I never asked him to solve my problems but he won't back off, Gunmen storm Mexican resort, kill 7 people, including a child, California is changing how it goes after illegal cannabis farms, Caught off guard: How South Floridas rare storm compares to others, and where it sits in history, The final encore for Phantom: What the show means to one New Yorker who saw it dozens of times, For Varland brothers, now both in the MLB at same time, a dream come true, Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information. The indictment outlines each position according to the NF Constitution. This event put into motion the longest-running gang war in the state of California. The availability and accuracy of information is largely dependent on various public sources from which the information is aggregated. Nuestra Familia gang initiation rites include blood in, blood out which means committing a bloody crime such as assault or murder in order to join or leave the gang. Now, they say they're spending their retirement paying for it, Investigation underway after E-40 claims he was ejected from Warriors-Kings game due to 'racial bias'. [15] The gang's main sources of income are distributing cocaine, heroin, marijuana, and methamphetamine within prison systems as well as in the community and extorting drug distributors on the streets. Pacifica: Suspect sought in indecent exposure incident, Fremont: Two-alarm apartment fire displaces 85 residents, Los Gatos party mom asks judge what sentence would be if she pleaded guilty as charged, They spent their lives teaching California's children. The inmates who formed the Nuestra Familia gang banded together to protect themselves from the Mexican Mafia, but then grew to be involved in drug dealing, extortion and robbery.[17]. Robert was a member of the Bay Area News Group reporting team awarded the 2017 Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News Reporting for East Bay Times coverage of the fatal "Ghost Ship" fire. Audio files from seminars, conferences, organization meetings, oral histories and from those knowledgeable will . "The arrests made yesterday, most significantly the arrests of the Nuestra Familia leadership, will severely cripple the ability of this criminal enterprise to continue to facilitate . According to the documents unsealed today, La Nuestra Familia - Spanish for "Our Family"- was a prison gang operating in the California state prison system. He ordered assaults and murders on behalf of NF and approved all 10 removals in this case. By removing violent actors and crime drivers from the streets, we make our neighborhoods safer.. The gangs targeted in this case are responsible for much of the illicit drug distribution and violent crime that has plagued areas throughout CA pic.twitter.com/cyLZ3Uls5c, FBI SanFrancisco (@FBISanFrancisco) September 16, 2021, We take aim at the head of the snake, Hinds said. The FBI's FOIA Library contains many files of public interest and historical value. SAN FRANCISCO -- Twenty-five members of the Nuestra Familia prison gang, including its 'general' and 'first captain,' have been indicted on conspiracy and racketeering charges -- including. While members of the Norteos gang are considered to be affiliated with Nuestra Familia, being a member of Nuestra Familia itself does not signify association as a Norteo. September 16, 2021 - SAN JOSE - A federal grand jury returned an indictment charging 17 defendants with racketeering . In 2010, Henry Cervantes and Larez were released from the BOP after serving sentences for racketeering conspiracy convictions in 2004 involving the distribution of controlled substances on behalf of the Nuestra Familia. Enter https://www.police1.com/ and click OK. Nuestra Familia members murder Eme leader Rudy "Chyenne" Cadena in Palm Hall at Chino. U.S. Attorney's Office, Northern District of California, Top Nuestra Familia Leader And Three Other Gang Members Sentenced For Murder, Racketeering, Oakland Resident Charged With Fentanyl And Methamphetamine Sales In Tenderloin, Jose Inez Garcia-Zarate Pleads Guilty To Federal Firearm Charges In Death Of Kate Steinle, East Bay Resident Found Guilty Of Attempting To Help Smuggle Cocaine Through Bay Area Airports. The indictment alleges an NF oath provides: If I lead, follow. The Norte-os are trying to establish (in Salinas) but every time they try to, there's shootouts." ) or https:// means youve safely connected to the .gov website. Members still pay homage and do the bidding of the leaders in prison because they know theyre likely to be behind bars with them again. A San Jose native, he graduated from UCLA with a BA degree in history and from the University of Maryland with a MA degree in journalism. Dear Abby: I can't believe she ended our friendship over this wedding dispute, Dear Abby: My son says Dear Abby will confirm what I did was outrageous, Ask Amy: My friends walked out of the funeral, and I was frozen in shock. A lock ( TTY: (415) 436-7221, Oakland: (510) 637-3680 [11], Members of Nuestra Familia are known to wear red bandanas ("red rags") to identify themselves. The court also may order additional terms of supervised release, fines, and restitution. This . Falling under the gang's supervision are Norteo street gangs established in numerous cities and counties, and in jails and prisons, throughout Northern California and elsewhere. The defendants are scheduled to make initial federal court appearances before U.S. Magistrate Court Judge Nathanael Cousins and U.S. Magistrate Court Judge Sallie Kim today. Of nuestra familia nuestra familia tattoo of them have a nuestra familia members. Los abuelos no slo cuidan; son el tronco de la familia extendida, aportan algo que los padres no siempre vislumbran: pertenencia e identidad, factores indispensables en los nuevos brotes. The indictment also describes the NFs organizational structure and, in particular, the gangs governing body: a seven-member General Council, made up of three Generals and a four-member Inner Council, which makes significant decisions and oversees the activities of the NF and its subservient gangs. Today, four additional members of the Nuestra Familia gang were sentenced for the heinous crimes they perpetrated upon our community, bringing to 12 the number of defendants sentenced as a result of this investigation, said U.S. Attorney Brian J. Despite the governor's complaints, all five are still housed in the same supermax unit. Garcia was "regiment commander" for the gang in charge of all Monterey County and he controlled the criminal activities of gang members in the jail. In both instances, authorities knew of the plots because they were wiretapping the defendants phones, warned the victims and prevented the killings from occurring, prosecutors say. We will continue to look at these organizations structurally to disrupt and dismantle them., According to the indictment, the 17 racketeering defendants were members and associates of the Nuestra Familia (NF) prison gang, a violent and lucrative organization formed in the 1960s. This case is being prosecuted by the Organized Crime Strike Force of the United States Attorneys Office for the Northern District of California. Nevertheless, any sentence following conviction would be imposed by the court only after consideration of the U.S. 2023 InfoPay, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Despite having this evidence, prosecutors didnt indict the pair until August 2021, two months after Zarate was allegedly involved in a shooting near a San Jose courthouse that left one man dead. 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