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Dallas police: Military gang recruiting concerning

12:01 AM CDT on Thursday, June 1, 2006
By REBECCA LOPEZ / WFAA-TV


Both the military and local police haved acnowledged that the military inadvertently recruiting existing gang members could become a problem if the members are looking for expert training in weaponry and other areas to take back to the streets

The graffitti of notorious gangs from the United States, such as the MS-13, Latin Kings and the Aryan Brotherhood, has shown up thousands of miles away in Iraq.

Pictures taken by the Chicago Sun-Times showed walls and armored carriers tagged with gang symbols.

"Yes, it is evident there are some who have made it into the armed services," said Major Christine Downing, an Army recruiter.

Police agencies across the country worry that gang members are using the military to get weapons training, and the Dallas Police Department has become so concerned that its gang unit is alerting the entire department.

"They are learning these tactics and they are bringing them back out to the street," said Lt. Carlton Marshall, Dallas Police Department.

In California, Marine Lance Cpl. Andres Raya shot two officers with a rifle outside a liquor store, which killed one officer. He was a member of the Norteno gang and spent seven months in Iraq before the shootings.

"These soldiers are getting hands on training in urban warfare," Lt. Marshall said.

What police said they are most concerned about is that its against federal law for police departments to give the military, or any non-police agency, information about gang members.

"We can't tell them they are a gang member," Lt. Marshall said.

The army said it does strict background checks, which include checking for gang tattoos and if they find any relations to gangs the person is immediately disqualified.

"Extremist organizations are prejudicial to good order and discipline and that's the reason they are prohibited from joining the military," Major Downing said.

When discussing the problems with gang members joining the military, some police point to a group called the Zetas. They were former Mexican military commandos trained to take on drug dealers that turned dirty and now protect the drug lords.

Police fear U.S. gang members will become like the Zetas and end up protecting the criminals.


E-mail rlopez@wfaa.com