149 arrested in S.E. Texas crackdown on gangs

June 8, 2008, 11:21PM
149 arrested in S.E. Texas crackdown on gangs


By SUSAN CARROLL
Copyright 2008 Houston Chronicle


A multiagency crackdown on Southeast Texas street gangs and other criminal activity led to the arrest of nearly 150 people last week, including 67 suspected gang members or associates, authorities said Sunday.

More than a dozen of those were allegedly members of the notorious Mara Salvatrucha organization, officials said.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents teamed with law enforcement agencies in Houston and seven other Texas cities to target gang members wanted on state charges or immigration violations, said Robert P. Rutt, special agent in charge of the ICE Office of Investigations in Houston.

The suspected gang members are associated with 22 organizations, authorities said, including the Mara Salvatrucha, aka MS-13, a violent street gang with roots in Central America and strong ties in Houston.

According to authorities, of the 67 arrested:

•Forty-six were arrested on suspicion of immigration violations.•Twenty were picked up on outstanding state arrest warrants and turned over to local authorities.
•One was arrested on a federal drug arrest warrant.
Rutt said Sunday that 21 of the 67 arrested were U.S. citizens. ICE officials declined to release the names of those arrested in the six-day operation, which ended Saturday, citing "pending charges."

The operation is part of an ICE program called "Operation Community Shield," which involves partnerships with other federal, state and local agencies to target gang members. More than a dozen such agencies participated in the operation, including the sheriffs' offices for Harris and Montgomery counties and the Houston Police Department's Gang Task Force.

Rutt said the enforcement operation allowed ICE to use immigration status as a "force multiplier" for local agencies struggling with gangs.

In addition to those with suspected gang ties, the operation led to the arrests of 82 people for criminal or immigration violations not related to gang activity, authorities said, bringing the total number of people arrested to 149. ICE officials said those detained on immigration violations were from Mexico, Honduras, El Salvador, Guatemala, Belize, Colombia and Pakistan.

THE CRACKDOWN
A gang enforcement operation led to the arrest of associates or suspected members tied to 22 Southeast Texas gangs, authorities said:
83 Mob
Brown Pride 13
Hermanos Pistoleros Latinos
Tango Blast Houstone
La Primera
La Quarenta
La Tercera Crips
Latin Kings
Mexican Mafia
Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13)
NICA'S
North Side Crips
PVL (Puros Vatos Locos)
Raza Unida
Ruthless Kings
Sacky Crew
Southside Bloods
Southwest Cholos
Sureno 13
Texas Syndicate
VNS (Barrio North Side)
Westside G.


Cities involved
Houston
Conroe
Galveston
Sugar Land
Bryan
Richmond
Beaumont
Corpus Christi

Source: Immigration and Customs Enforcement

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/5826219.html