The Bloods and the Crips will likely adapt to their new environment just as other inmates do. The Texas Syndicate (Spanish: Sindicato Tejano) is a mostly Texas -based street and prison gang consisting of predominantly Mexican American membership. a. being sexed in. [1] The Texas Syndicate has approximately 1,300 members, the majority of whom are Mexican American males aged between 20 and 40. It was a blind spot, and unit officials hoped the inmates wouldnt notice. The moment Garcia asked Sandoval to bring marijuana into TDCJ, it did not take superhuman deductive powers for the guard to figure out the Hispanic inmates clientele. After being released from California prisons these inmates returned to Texas, often returning to violence and re-entering the prison system. Either the guard didnt know what was going on, or he did. Without drugs, gangs would have little income; without income, they would have little power over the system. Im on trial, sir, conceded the polite young man in the pin-striped suit who sat in the witness stand. If the recruit answers, "I will share my umbrella," he is deemed unworthy of membership and becomes a s*x slave. Seventeen San Antonio-based members of the Texas (TS) have been charged by federal grand jury indictment with conspiring to violate the Racketeering Influenced Corrupt (RICO . Do they spread their message and beliefs through peaceful interaction and pamphlets? The gang mostly deals drugs, with Oxycontin, heroin, and crack being the big ticket money-makers. Theyre gonna say you were in on it. Most new members are initiated in a two-step process. Pascual Salazar, age 36 of Austin, one kilogram or more of heroin. The main activities of the TS are centered on drug trafficking, extortion, protection rackets, and internal discipline and contract murdering. The Texas Syndicate, more than La Eme or Nuestra Familia, has been more associated or allied with Mexican immigrant prisoners, such as the "Border . Change). . During August and September of 1985, a long-standing rivalry between the Mexican Mafia and the TS exploded into a free-for-all throughout the prison system, leaving eleven inmates dead. Sandoval marveled at the river of red the inmate had left behind. 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. 8/21/2008) (Tex. Armando Garcia had seen this coming. By now he was a CO III, an old boot, and he had trained many of the guards who now worked with him. a) Texas Attorney General conference, October 1999 and 2003 b) Texas Department of Criminal Justice - Security Threat Group Officers c) California Department of Corrections The United Blood Nation, who still operate to this day in New York, was a gang started back in the early 1990's to protect members from Puerto Rican and Hispanic gangs, such as the Latin Kings and Netas. One can easily compare joining a gang while in prison to joining a fraternity in college. 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. But no one suspected a thing. The motorcycle gang has roots going back to the 1960s, but only debuted on the DPS's Texas Gang Threat Assessment in 2015 after a deadly clash with the Bandidos Motorcycle Club in Waco on May 17 that left nine people dead. In contrast, sixteen current or former Ellis I employees testified. Anyone who gets through that is considered tough enough to be a member. Thats all they dolook for our weaknesses.. 0333 344 7476. muck tool progression. Arturo Gallegos Castrellon, pictured, is serving a life sentence in U.S. federal prison for leading the assassins. Perhaps it was because Vicente was so quiet and servile or perhaps he had such a talent for lingering that the porters simply paid him no mind. Prisoners join gangs, thereby becoming strong, and prey upon the weak. Push inevitably came to shove: In two separate gang confrontations, the Texans murdered one California inmate and seriously wounded another. Other chapters of the gang make this cocktail but use the blood of other members and recruits, along with wine and ashes to make it. Arredondo was a Texas Syndicate member. (LogOut/ I knew he didnt have nothing to do with it. State, No. texas syndicate initiation. If you last six months in there, youll make it. The first Texas prison guard ever to be tried for the murder of an inmate seemed eager to describe, to me and to the jurors, the pressures and temptations a correctional officer faces. (Officials also say the Texas Syndicate is far more selective and does not, for example, recruit homosexuals.) There are a few different methods of initiation in this gang. By the fall of 1986, several months after the gang lockdown policy had been instituted, Joe Arredondos cockiness began to catch up with him. Upon conviction of the drug trafficking charge: Castilleja, Luna, Salazar, Salas and Alvarez face between ten years and life in federal prison; Jimenez-Jaimes, Carrasco, Cantu, Accord, John Vera, Josh Vera, Anzaldua, Medina, Villarreal and May face between five and 40 years in federal prison; Armstead and Klasing face up to 20 years in federal prison based on their involvement, drug type and drug amount involved. Our experienced management team drives success using innovative analytical techniques, coupled with technical rigor and ingenuity to deliver superior returns to investors . In the tenements across the street from the Texas A&I University stadium lived a fifteen-year-old girl named Veronica, whom he married on June 22, 1985, after learning that TDCJ had accepted his application for employment as a correctional officer, or CO. gangs in Texas, and they underscore the commitment among law enforcement and criminal justice agencies in Texas to share information and intelligence in order to effectively combat crime and improve public safety. Hes bleeding! He whirled and burst into the B-wing hallway. Coded language is commonly utilized during drug related phone calls. Whos on trial here, Louie? demanded the intense and steely-eyed chief prosecutor, Travis McDonald, during his two-hour grilling of Luis Sandoval on May 24, 1991. Some are disgusting, some are dehumanizing and shocking, while others are just confusing. Alcohol was forbidden, yet chock, or homemade wine, was made in a variety of ways in cells, the crudest method being by letting food wrapped in a plastic bag fester in a toilet tank. In a sense, you become a convict also.. Katy Vine has been a staff writer since 2002. Each society sustains the other, but the economic cycle depends on a vital link, for the supply will not meet the demand unless the product reaches the consumer. West Texas Syndicate has always embraced the spirit of a hardworking, relentless underdog. Apparently the inmates at Ellis I had noticed this as well, for their sweet talk had gotten to him. If you tell him, Put that knife down, hell look up at you and say, I aint through yet. These people are serious. Bring on the Shiplap? Hey, boss, you got a light? Luis Sandoval pulled out his lighter and, as he had before, lit the cigarette held by Armando Garcia. 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. Now it was May 1991, and Sandoval was behind bars, his fate in the hands of a Huntsville jury. The brutality of the murder, coupled with Sandovals complete inability to prevent it, made quite an impression on the young guard. We in the free world classify inmates according to motivation: those who do not wish to live a life of crime and those who know no other life; those who wish only to do their time and get out and those who function best in a kill-or-be-killed environment. And each gang, after accomplishing the first objective of protection from other gangs, preyed on inmates who would buy drugs or sex or who could be intimidated into giving sex or buying protection. Se Habla Espaol Call For aFREEInitial Consultation. In many places, it is normal to get "jumped in." Somehow an inmate by the name of Vicente had gotten past the new boots boys. The Latin Kings, a gang that started out back in the 1950's in Chicago, are among the largest gangs in the world. To pay for his legal expenses, his mother sold the family home. He just got involved with the wrong people.. The Texas Syndicate, including its leadership, membership and associates, constitute an "enterprise" as defined by Title 18, United States Code, Section 1961(4), that is, a group of individuals associated in . Joe Arredondo was taken to a hospital in Huntsville. Berry) Like fat-bellied ships heavily laden with riches, our 19 ewes lie uncomfortably at anchor, waiting to be offloaded. Not one of them said that Sandoval was a bad officer; many, in fact, went out of their way to laud his abilities. Now Turner could be seen pushing trash cans down the hall, twirling his knife in the air; nobody took his knife away. Later, Vicente asked the guard if a free world individual could mail Sandoval two money orders, which Sandoval would cash and then bring the $250 to the inmates. (LogOut/ Prison units are individually controlled by a local chairman and vice chairman. Since the late 1970s, the TDCJ has seen a gradual increase in TS-related activities within the system and the Texas Syndicate remains one of the main security threats within the TDCJ. Members of the Texas Syndicate maintain regular communication with members who have been imprisoned. 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. Tejanos were being preyed upon by California prison gangs in some of the most notorious California . And as in any society, some lead while others are led. Youre telling us you saw nothing? The task would range from a serious assault to murder. But now that seemed the least of Luis Sandovals worries. They have more than one ritual to get into the gang, but two of the most common are taking a brutal beating (getting jumped in) and in other cases, recruits are told to murder someone. The gang also allies with other gangs including the Mexican Mafia and MS-13. The mule, they believed, had done the drugs himself. That afternoon, Ellis I warden Jerry Peterson called Sandoval into his office to congratulate him on a fine job. Our nation-wide commitment to reducing gun crime in America, Report Waste, Fraud, Abuse or Misconduct to the Inspector General, Find Help and Information for Crime Victims, Register, Apply for Permits, or Request Records. Other members have been instructed to attack strangers or cops, and of course, many of the women who get into this gang do so by offering themselves to multiple members. There was no further violence, a signal to those who understood gang behavior that Arredondo had been snuffed out by one of his own rather than by a rival gang. They were founded in Nigeria over a decade ago, but now operate in several African countries. The roles in the Arredondo hit were decided in either the chow hall or the chapel, where numbers were drawn from a cup. The caller advised Sandoval not to show up for his March 18, 1991, trial, and then hung up without identifying himself. And call for a gurney.. Their initiation ritual for new recruits includes a pledge but also a bath in a mixture of goat's blood, urine, and tripe. Sandoval buckled. Sandoval told me that he took the money, though he denied it in court. Ten Ellis I guards who worked with Sandoval testified that they had no knowledge that Sandoval was involved in drug transactions with prison gangs. According to a US Justice Department press release: Texas Syndicate, a criminal organization whose members and associates engage in acts of violence, including murder, conspiracy to commit murder, extortion and narcotics distribution. I want to see the mountains, he said. Like any good criminal organization, there is an interesting ritual for all new members, although there are some variations for different chapters. The officials fitted Sandoval with handcuffs, leg irons, and a belly chain. texas syndicate initiation . Were he to pay his old workplace a visit, Luis Sandoval would notice several changes at Ellis I. 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. Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in: You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. The gang murders that once took place inside prisons now take place on the streets. Ellis I officials caught wind of the deal through a snitch. Scroll through the slideshow for 10 things you need to know about the Barrio Azteca gang. 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. Nothing during three weeks of by-the-book lectures at the Texas Department of Criminal Justice training academy had prepared him for the helplessness he felt as a lone correctional officer constantly surrounded by violent criminals. They blew the paycheck on the slot machines; they had a wonderful time. When cocaine is available, the supplier might tell his customers that he had work available. City Employees Are Heading for the Exits. Meanwhile, white inmates, tired of being robbed and sexually assaulted by the larger population of black inmates, began the Aryan Brotherhood of Texas. Sandovals apparent relationship with the gang did not escape the attention of the Ellis I population. But the report was not a signed confession. Guards could still smell burning marijuana and still see inmates giggling to themselves. When asked about it, Sandoval testified that the report merely contained Schapers accusations, which Sandoval denied then and would deny now, under oath. and swallow the smoldering sun. Members and prospects are made aware that the affiliation with the TS requires their assistance with the criminal activity of the enterprise when called upon to do so and is an important step toward obtaining higher status in the organization. Probably the most famous of any gang on this list, the Hell's Angels have hundreds of chapters in dozens of countries across the globe. He would stand at the searchers desk like he was running the building, Sandoval said. But other factors have caused guards to agree to be drug mules. Violent retribution is an important activity of the enterprise. Sandoval described Ellis I warden Jerry Peterson as a good man but a figurehead. For his trouble, the inmates offered the guard $75. There are a couple of rituals that are listed among their practices for new members, including r*ping a woman and sustaining a brutal beating. Juan Carlos Castilleja, age 29 of New Braunfels, 500 grams or more of methamphetamine; Roman Gabriel Luna, age 34 of Austin, 500 grams or more of methamphetamine/one kilogram of heroin; Brandon Carrasco, age 21 of Kenedy, TX, 50 grams or more of methamphetamine; David Cantu, age 46 of Gonzales, 50 grams or more of methamphetamine; John Vera, age 26 of Gonzales, 50 grams or more of methamphetamine; Josh Vera, age 26 of Gonzales, 50 grams or more of methamphetamine; Lisa Anzaldua, age 31 of Luling, 50 grams or more of methamphetamine; Noemi Medina, age 25 of Seguin, 50 grams or more of methamphetamine; Paul Villarreal, age 45 of Luling, 50 grams or more of methamphetamine; Michael Armstead, age 47 of San Marcos, less than 50 grams of methamphetamine; Steven Klasing, age 37 of Austin, less than 50 grams of methamphetamine/less than 100 grams of heroin; Rafael Salas, age 38 of San Antonio, one kilogram or more of heroin; and. That first week, as he chatted with one of the old boots, the cry came from somewhere behind him: Help me, Boss! Turning around, Sandoval saw a Hispanic inmate standing behind a hallway crash-gate, clinging to the bars with both hands. Sometimes, members who have a problem or muleta that they need to work off in order to achieve better status with the TS are called upon to perform the ordered task. After building tenders disappeared due to a court order, the Syndicate's activities turned to drug trafficking, extortion, prostitution, protection, illegal gambling, and contract killing. Jos R. Ralat is Texas Monthlys taco editor, writing about tacos and Mexican food. And as you work there, you tend to become a product of your environment. house for rent waldport oregon; is thanos a villain or anti hero The system snitches on one mule while protecting another. After their verdict was announced on Wednesday, May 29, the jurors milled around outside the courtroom and vented their disgust with the states case to the media. 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