gangs: March 2008 Archives

This letter was written by Valerie Shaw, a concerned mom. It's addressed to an LAPD assistant chief and describes the fear she feels after her son got on the wrong side of the Avenues gang in Highland Park. Copies of the letter were sent to several members of the media as well as Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and City Attorney Rocky Delgadillo.

Here's the letter:

Dear Asst. Chief Paysinger,
On Monday I spoke with your assistant, Natalie, regarding my son's situation with the Avenues in Highland Park. She was very kind to listen to me and I felt her compassion. Thanks to her intervention we were immediately contacted by Det. Ortiz and the entire Northeast Gang Unit.
 
With the guidance of Aztecs Rising, we decided to give statements which so far have resulted in the arrest of two members of the Avenues, both in violation of parole. Now my son has been greenlighted and the police want him to relocate immediately!  We are all scared to death. 
 
Although he's been offered $2,000 under the Witness Assistance Program, we understand that now they want him/us to raise the money and they'll reimburse. 
 
Doesn't the LAPD realize that if I had $2,000 my son, my only child, would have already been out of town!!!  Surely you must know that your office's suggested remedy is unsatisfactory. If your office cannot protect its witnesses, why should anyone ever get involved? This, surely, is a deep step into anarchy, with gangs ruling our communities and the police helpless to do anything but take a crime report.  
 
My son and I have been congratulated on our courage, and with the intervention of Aztecs Rising, I am grateful for the assurance that there will be extra patrols assigned to our neighborhood. Thus I am sure that I and other household members will be safe in the home we've owned for 21 years. But my son is entirely a different matter, and he's just beginning to live his life. He deserves more than a purchase order to be processed according to protocol. He deserves your immediate and undivided attention. Right now he's feeling abandoned and confused, and to be honest, so am I. 
 
I just wrote this blog which begins to explore and express my feelings in regard to this unfortunate matter. I am comforted to know that I am not alone; for there are thousands of parents like me--all seeking help, reaching out to save their children. If we can't work in cooperation with the police, who are we to turn to?  Furthermore, if your goal is gang prevention and intervention, shouldn't your objective be to protect those citizens who assist in those efforts? 
 
I called your office three times yesterday, but so far Natalie has not called me back. It is my prayer that you or Natalie reads your e-mail, as this is an extremely urgent matter.
Most sincerely,
Valerie Shaw

As for Shaw's blog, tit2 late 4 time out, the latest entry is titled: "Bad Behavior Shouldn't Be a Death Sentence" 

Excerpt after the jump.

This comes from the FBI who are continuing to search for Emigado Preciado. You might remember that a Whittier billboard featuring a picture of preciado was defaced with gang graffiti in recent months. Basicaly, the FBI is upping their reward to $200,000. Here's an excerpt from their press release:

The reward for information leading to the arrest of fugitive from Los Angeles, Emigdio Preciado, wanted for a brutal attack on two Los Angeles County Sheriff's Deputies during a routine traffic stop, has been increased to $200,000, announced Salvador Hernandez, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI in Los Angeles.

Preciado's photograph is also being advertised on billboards throughout Los Angeles, courtesy of billboard space provided by Clearchannel, in an effort to draw attention to the reward. Emigdio Preciado, Jr., a.k.a. "Junior," "Trigger," "Spooky," and "Snyper," the alleged triggerman in the September 5, 2000 attack in Whittier, California, was the 485th person to be placed on the FBI's historic list when he was added in March 2007.

 On the date of the attack, Deputies Michael Schaap and David Timberlake were on patrol in Whittier, California, in a marked Sheriff's patrol car when they saw a 1979 Chevrolet van traveling toward them. As the van approached, the deputies noticed the van's headlights were not functioning properly and proceeded to stop the driver of the vehicle. When the van came to an abrupt stop, the deputies came under immediate attack from a burst of automatic gunfire.

The gunman, one of four occupants traveling in the vehicle, appeared from an open door in the van, according to Sheriff's detectives. Preciado, an American citizen, was identified as the alleged shooter.

The FBI's wanted poster is here.

A Los Angeles jury found that Ralph Flores killed four people between 1999 and 2004. Prosecutors said he was a member of one of Southern California's most violent gangs.

Judge Kathleen Kennedy ( you may remember her from the O.J. Simpson preliminary hearing) heard the case and will continue to preside over future hearings.

The tattoo where Flores' mustache should be reads "AZUSA."

As for the convictions, one killing carried a hate crime enhancement, another invoved the torture death of a suspected female informant.

Here's the full story. The penalty phase in Flores' trial begins Monday. he could be sentenced to death.

The feds are rounding up Puente 13 members in connection with a methamphetamine distribution ring, according to the FBI.

Already arrested are:

John Antonio Dacosta, 28, Steven Mark Mancha, 34, Ernest George Mancha, 34, and Lenny Robert Casas, 18, all of Whittier; Lorraine Christina Lopez, 34, Josue Deloen, 26, Rene Valdez, 39, Rafael Munoz Gonzalez, 38,
Steven Burgan, 25, Noel Gonzalez, 56, Noel Gonzalez III, 35, Michael Anthony Ortega, 35, Henry Collao, 20, and Joventino Garcia III, 18, all of La Puente; Andy Villa, 27, of Glendora; Hoia Thanh Nguyen, 32, of El Monte; Wayne Arthur Goik, 59, of West Covina; and Antonio Torres, 20, of Phoenix, who was arrested
in Arizona.

From the wire services and an FBI Press Release:

Last December, the Sheriff’s Department created a task force along with the U.S. Attorney’s
Office, DEA and the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and Explosives, to
investigate the drug and firearms trafficking operations of Puente 13, prosecutors
said.

Puente 13 distributed large quantities of methamphetamine, a portion of which was produced
locally in clandestine laboratories, prosecutors said.

Puente 13 members also allegedly sold cocaine, marijuana and oxycodine in Los Angeles,
Seattle, Arizona, Alaska and North Carolina.

Authorities executed 35 federal search warrants, which yielded one pound of suspected
methamphetamine, 20 pounds of marijuana and 16 firearms, prosecutors said.

“Today’s arrests will severely disrupt firearms and methamphetamine trafficking operations
in the San Gabriel Valley,” said DEA Special Agent Timothy Landrum in a
statement.

PASADENA - Seven suspected gang members were arrested in the city in the last week for the stabbing and beating of three people at a city gas station.

The people were fueling up their car at a gas station near the intersection of Lake Avenue and Washington Blvd. around 2:30 a.m. on February 10 when the suspects surrounded them and attacked, said Lt. Alex Uribe of the Pasadena Police.

The men arrested are Julio Hernandez, 23, Gustavo Menzo, 18, Edgar Sentero, 19, Michael Martin Solis, 19, Robert Julio Arnaud, 19, Jose Antonio Garcia, 24, and Wilbur Dominguez, 19.

Uribe said that he believed the suspects are members of the Pasadena Latin Kings gang.

Six of the suspects were arrested on February 28, when Pasadena police detectives and SWAT team members served search warrants at three Pasadena locations and one in Duarte, police said.

The victims survived the attack, said Uribe. The suspects were charged with assault with a deadly weapon, he said

This comes from Laura Eimiller at the FBI's Los Angeles press office:

The second annual International Chiefs of Police Summit on Transnational Gangs will be held this week over a three-day period at the Universal Hilton Hotel in Hollywood, California.

The summit will conclude on Wednesday, March 5th.

Law enforcement officials at the local, state and federal level from Los Angeles and international cities directly impacted by the criminal activity of transnational gangs will attend the three-day summit, and will be joined by international Chiefs of Police from the nations of El Salvador, Honduras, Guatemala, Belize, Mexico, Canada, Nicaragua and Spain, where MS-13 criminal activity and organized crime trends of other Central American gangs has increased.

The Summit is being hosted by the following agencies:

FBI and the National Gang Task Force

United States Department of Justice

Drug Enforcement Agency

Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives

United States Marshals Service

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement

United States Department of State

Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department

Los Angeles Police Department

Los Angeles City Attorney’s Office

The United States Attorney’s Office/U.S. Department of Justice

The Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office and the Los Angeles Mayor’s Office will also participate in the summit.