Although, they do have alliances with some Hispanic gangs. But he also acknowledged that he had made mistakes; and to me, though not to the jury, he confessed that one of those mistakes was bringing drugs into Ellis I. Prison officials believe that the rivalry between the TS and the Mexican Mafia has produced homicides in Austin, Dallas, Houston, El Paso, and especially San Antonio, where nearly one hundred suspected prison-gang-related murders were committed last year. Chris is a sports enthusiast with a fondness for politics, craft beer, horror movies and travel. Sandoval weighed his choices. Plain and simple, many young people trying to get into this group are instructed to kill a member of a rival gang. The warden would later testify that Sandovals actions were somewhat heroic. But, Peterson added, the hero had seemed awfully calm in the midst of all the bloodshedperhaps too calm. Their leader is one of the FBI's 10 most wanted criminals. Jurors convicted 38-year-old Raul "Fatboy . The question was when. The Texas Department of Criminal Justice has initiated a process, which provides a method for inmates who have been assigned to restrictive housing as a member of a security threat group on a previous incarceration, to renounce their membership with the security threat group (STG). Anytime they choseanytimethey could kill him. He told her that he feared the Texas prison authorities, who by now had surely discovered that the murder of Joe Arredondo was, if anything, a result of prison mismanagement. The main activities of the TS are centered on drug trafficking, extortion, protection rackets, and internal discipline and contract murdering. The enterprise constitutes an ongoing organization whose members function as a continuing unit for a common purpose of achieving the objectives of the enterprise. In 1967, the Nuestra Familia prison gang (which is comprised of inmates from the northern rural areas of California) and the Texas Syndicate (made up of inmates from Texas) formed to defend themselves against the Mexican Mafia (EME), the Aryan Brotherhood, and Black prison gangs that existed in the California penal system. In a sense, you become a convict also.. You were in the hallway, Smithey said. I just want to take care of my business, he would tell gang members who tried to recruit him. The murder came as a result of the Gulf Cartel hiring the Texas Syndicate to kidnap Serrano from his home in Texas and take him to cartel members in Mexico. That question is something to the effect of "if it is raining, and you have an umbrella but I do not, what would you do?" According to testimony, the man who drew the magic card, number one, was TS sergeant Carlos Rosas, a 31-year-old Dallas resident who was serving thirty years for aggravated robbery. Sandoval lied: No, sir. Contradicting this claim, Internal Affairs investigator Dale Schaper took the stand and read his report of the night Sandoval was arrested. Arredondo was a Texas Syndicate member. Their initiation rituals vary based on whether or not a given cell of the gang is in prison or on the outside. If you last six months in there, youll make it. When Luis Sandoval went to work for the Texas prison system, he did the wrong favors for the wrong people. Joe Arredondo was one of those inmates, an arrogant squirt barely over five feet tall who frequently provoked guards but never got in trouble for it. That statistic does not come close to reflecting the actual number of TDCJ employees suspected of involvement in corrupt activities. I didnt do it, Sandoval announced to me in a recent phone conversation. Federal, state and local authorities have arrested 17 members and associates of the Texas Syndicate in connection with a methamphetamine/heroin trafficking operation in central Texas announced U.S. Attorney John F. Bash, FBI Special Agent in Charge Christopher Combs, San Antonio Division, Austin Police Chief Brian Manley, Texas Department of Public Safety Director Steven McCraw, and Gonzales Police Chief Tim Crow. An estimated 70,000 in their ranks, they are as violent as they are numerous, and what was once a Los Angeles-based operation, now has interests across the United States and in Canada. On Sandovals shift alone, at least four or five guards had been busted for bringing drugs into prison, but there were others who hadnt been busted and probably never would be. Bring on the Shiplap? The drug trade was lucrative, and Sandoval always seemed to be hurting for money. The task would range from a serious assault to murder. The Latin Kings, a gang that started out back in the 1950's in Chicago, are among the largest gangs in the world. College Fraternities are a basis of social support and are a useful means of college students to feel part of a group and not isolated from other college students. Unlike most state crises, there is absolutely no mystery to the takeover of our prisons by violent gangs. This gang is one of the most notorious out there and has even been mentioned directly by Donald Trump, who has pledged to eradicate them in particular. Tango Blast, Aryan Brotherhood and Aryan Circle are the most active prison gangs in the region. Assistant U.S. Finally, in areas in which the Gangster Disciples (a rival gang) operate, groups of Latin Kings may drive around showing GD hand symbols and then carry out a drive-by shooting on anyone who flashes the signal back. He was whisked off to the Walker County jail. The 18 second beating is a theme for this gang, and they often employ it as a disciplinary measure when proper respect isn't shown to a leading member or if a member goes against the gang's rules. The roles in the Arredondo hit were decided in either the chow hall or the chapel, where numbers were drawn from a cup. Gang initiation is determined either by a formula system, whereas if the member completes all the requirements (which sometimes include killing another person) and the other basic requirements (such as race, ethnicity etc), they are automatically initiated. First, a new prisoner or prospective member is asked a question by a member. The Texas Syndicate, unlike the Mexican Mafia or Nuestra Familia, has been more associated or allied with Mexican immigrant prisoners. It was not the most hospitable climate for trust, which was something Sandoval felt inclined to consider when Armando Garcia and Vicente held out a letter and asked Sandoval to mail it for them. The answer was always no said former Ellis I officer Nolan McCool, If the opportunity exists, theyre gonna make the hit. However, prospects stand ready to carry out decisions made at these meetings as this would help improve their status in the organization. We assembled and maintain a team of the best talent with a keen eye on the future. It was a pleasure to deal with an inmate man to man, for once. There are a few different methods of initiation in this gang. It took more than three years for the Arredondo murder case to come to trial, during which time a number of things happened to Sandoval. Ranking structure : Paramilitary/Buisness Territory : Houston . Were he to pay his old workplace a visit, Luis Sandoval would notice several changes at Ellis I. One day Garcia told Sandoval to expect a call at home that evening. If you didnt treat your snitch right, he would scurry off to a more grateful listener and begin his new relationship by snitching on you. I could watch him deal with inmates and think, This guy knows something I dont know., One evening, while gazing out from his apartment balcony, Sandoval saw a car drive slowly by. He previously covered real estate, economic development, retail and tourism. Asked point-blank by his attorney, Did you ever bring drugs inside TDCJ? Pursuant to this objective, members act to protect each other and to build a strong, disciplined organization through intimidation and violent retribution against outsiders and through strict and harsh discipline of members and associates who violate the rules and goals of the enterprise. Regardless of the members friendship or association with the victim, the orders are to be carried out since the rules mandate that the TS comes first, even before family. Garcia, of course, could snitch to the Ellis I authorities. None of them knew anything about Sandoval and drugs. [2] The Syndicate is the oldest Texan prison gang. Sandoval marveled at the river of red the inmate had left behind. Today, Sandoval says he mailed the letter and others like it with a kind heart but with bad judgment. And in an institution where judgment allowed some inmates to flaunt dangerous weapons while officials looked the other way, mailing the letter seemed like a minor transgression. The Department of Public Safety has released its 2015 Texas Gang Threat Assessment report. Such retribution helps enforce loyalty of the organization which is necessary for ensuring the smooth running of the drug distribution business as well as maintaining discipline within the enterprise. The guard said he wasnt tied to anyone. Theyd say, Dont mess with him., The new boot thereby became a feared boss among bosses. Cocaine might be referred to by many names including sheet rock, girls, teenager, teener, french fries, bacon, white shirt and flour. Marijuana might be referred to by names including elbows, feed, stuff for horses, hay for horses, green and grass. Methamphetamines were commonly referred to as ice, crystal, windshields, the cold stuff and yellow. Suppliers and customers also use abbreviated numbers to indicate quantity and price, such as an order for a whole onion that costs at least 7 bucks, meaning that an order of an ounce of cocaine would cost $700. [3] Syndicate members have been known to carry out contract killings for Los Zetas, the paramilitary wing of the Gulf Cartel. Once a gang member is initiated, the recruit is under a blood in blood out oath whereas, they typically make a cut on their arm to symbolize their blood in, and that their only way to leave the gang is death, either from murder from a rival gang, or death for treason. Just as he entered, Sandoval heard someone yell, Hes on the floor! Convicts made primitive ovens out of foil-lined cardboard boxes equipped with a light bulb, and cooked deer or rabbit killed by inmates working in the fields. In Del Rio, a federal judge sentenced 29 Uvalde/Hondo-area Texas Syndicate (TS) members over the past two weeks to federal prison, including four defendants to life imprisonment, for various racketeering and drug trafficking offenses committed in Uvalde, San Antonio and the surrounding areas announced United States Attorney Richard L. Durbin, Jr., and Special Agent in Charge Christopher Combs . Se Habla Espaol Call For aFREEInitial Consultation. The defendants, allegedly, conspired to distribute methamphetamine/heroin in Austin, San Marcos, Luling, Gonzales, New Braunfels, Hutto, Kenedy, Seguin, Bastrop and Tuscaloosa, AL, since January 2018. Katy Vine has been a staff writer since 2002. Joshua Fechter is a reporter covering City Hall and San Antonio politics for the Express-News. It was their fault, not his, but someone would have to take the fall. Jun 29, 2022. ogden clinic cardiology . Rosas would do the killing, while another TS member held Arredondo and two others stood by as lookouts. (LogOut/ The Mac Baller Brims are a relatively small group operating in New York City, but they have made a mark on that area through brutality both inside and outside of the prison system. Symbols : TS, Tejanos, Texas symbols, long horns, demons, horned dragons, cuernos and syndicatos. Or if they cared to enforce the rule. Upon graduating from Moody College of Communication at the University of Texas at Austin in 2014, Joshua joined the Express-News in 2014 as a breaking news reporter. I looked up and as he was running by, he looked at melike he wanted to cry, you know? The impulse is to accommodate the inmate, since prisonsspiritual wastelands of concrete and metalcry out for random acts of human kindness. For several years, they have been using s*xual tactics to get people to join their ranks. Several weeks after the jurys verdict, he told me over the phone that he wished to recant everything he had said to me on tape about his involvement with drugs. The organization, also known as Los Barrios, derives some of its strength through alliances with Mexican drug cartels. Berry) Like fat-bellied ships heavily laden with riches, our 19 ewes lie uncomfortably at anchor, waiting to be offloaded. But things got more interesting when Internal Affairs investigator Dale Schaper walked into the room and handed Sandoval copies of his phone records, showing that 25 phone calls he had made on Vicentes behalf were to a high-ranking TS official named Felix Benavidez. The majority of what they do is criminal, from extortion to execution. Yes, he had made the phone calls. Every inmate was confined to his cell, stripped of recreation and visitation privileges, and fed sandwiches that guards tossed through the bars of the cell. After release from prison, a TS member is required to contact the high-ranking member in the geographical area where the released member intends to reside. The soldiers and prospectos (prospects) are often used to carry out violent TS business. Sandoval did not tell his mother why he was such a vulnerable candidate. What sustains the gangs is money, which inmates use to bribe prison employees. Mike Hall writes about criminals, musicians, the law, and barbecue. His father died. Looking toward the chapel, he could see Crippin ahead of him, heading for the hidden narrow corridor at the west end of the B-wing. And call for a gurney.. I dont have any money to get any stamps, Garcia explained. Roughly 33 percent of gang members entering the Texas Department of Criminal Justice system in 2014 were from the southeast Texas region, with 90 percent of those coming from Greater Houston. But the sudden absence of gang wars did not mean that the gangs had gone away. So dont try. Guards have been instructed to monitor gang activity but have shown an embarrassing inability to do so. Yes, we know that there is some discrepancy listing a major terrorist organization along with prison gangs, but recruiting methods and reliance on crime for income make terror organizations like ISIS similar enough to gangs to list them here. Texas Syndicate Members In San Antonio Indicted On Racketeering Charges Charges allege responsibility for four murders, three attempted murders and drug distribution . So it may be a week or a month or a yearbut that hit is on.. It took months before someone looked closely at the gas mask featured on the patch and realized that every correctional officer at the unit had been wearing the letters TS across his forehead. They didnt believe Sandoval. A long, metal objecta homemade knife, or shankprotruded from his jugular. Ellis I officials caught wind of the deal through a snitch. On Monday, at eight in the morning, Sandoval reported for duty at the Ellis I training academy in Huntsville. Between full members and associates both within and outside of the prison system, the group has an estimated membership of around 10,000, and as the name implies, it is a white gang. When cocaine is available, the supplier might tell his customers that he had work available. Other gangs have a voting system to determine whether the member is initiated or not. This time, however, four Internal Affairs officers greeted him inside by reading him his rights and charging him with murder. Change), You are commenting using your Facebook account. All of above. At the close of the eighth hour, the shift changes, but the inmates remain. Several of them testified vigorously that Ellis I was understaffed and overcrowded, and that the unit was riddled with blind spots. Eventually, however, Vicente and Garcia began to ask for more than a light. Blood was gushing out of a hole in his neck; he was unconscious but gasping wildly. The rules of the Texas Syndicate prohibit the distribution of information regarding fellow members to law enforcement. The guard made the call, apparently unaware that such messages, and the letters, might contain coded instructions from a prison drug-runner to a high-ranking member of the Texas Syndicate. A fresh take on sports: the biggest news and most entertaining lists. Texas Syndicate: Founded in the 1970s at the Folsom State Prison in California ; . When they got there they found Joe Arredondo lying on his back. 826 Hispanic members operate across Texas, including specific reportings in the Coffield Unit, about 60 miles southwest of Tyler, and . DPS says the 2014 arrest of cartel leader Vicente Carrillo Fuentes diminished the gangs influence. In some cases, a recruit is instructed to kill two people; either way, a murder is involved. In total, the gang had an estimated 5,000 members in Juarez and 3,000 in the United States in 2013, Insight Crime reported. One of the first things that often happen when these kids are taken is that the local leaders will take them back to their villages and force them tokill their parents. This allows members to function with less oversight, especially within the prison system. Not one of them pinned the murder of Joe Arredondo on Sandoval. Then he returned to Arredondo. Around the same time, prison officials expressed concern about the fifty or sixty members of the two Los Angeles-based black street gangs, the Bloods and the Crips, that had recently entered the system. In return, the snitch had an oversized cell to himself, plus a hall pass that gave him the run of the unit. They are affiliated with local prison gangs and often stock their ranks with young children, some in their early teens (not an uncommon practice for gangs in general). If he refused to do the favor, they could always snitch on him for lighting an inmates cigarettethough Sandoval didnt think either was that type of inmate. Join The Syndicate Speak with representative Astrid in the Syndicate Enclave and, should you desire, join the Syndicate Go up the stairs within the Enclave to speak with Astrid. According to Sandoval, Howard Digby, a runty burglar with a pug nose and heavily tattooed arms, was known as a captains boy, a snitch who filled his bosss cup with coffee and his ear with prison gossip. Chow time meant that vast numbers of inmates would be crowded together in one room. When asked about it, Sandoval testified that the report merely contained Schapers accusations, which Sandoval denied then and would deny now, under oath. The Texas Syndicate (Spanish: Sindicato Tejano) is a mostly Texas-based street and prison gang consisting of predominantly Mexican American membership. While accurate numbers are difficult to come up with (do we include associates or just full members? Scroll through the slideshow for 10 facts you need to know about the Texas-Mexico border gang. Deal through a snitch laden with riches, our 19 ewes lie uncomfortably at,! They got there they found Joe Arredondo lying on his back says he mailed letter... 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