Thread: S.C.: Bad signs? Graffiti may indicate growing gang activity

Bad signs? Graffiti may indicate growing gang activity here
By PETER FROST
pfrost@islandpacket.com
Aug 4, 2007
Authorities say a rash of graffiti scrawled recently on signs, buildings and other infrastructure in Bluffton could be efforts by local gangs to establish turf and recruit new members.

Bluffton Police Chief David McAllister said several signs in the Buckwalter area and near Bluffton Parkway have been defaced in the last two weeks with gang-related messages, some of which appear to reference the dangerous MS-13 gang.

In response, the department is organizing a number of initiatives and programs to stem gang activity "before it has a chance to really take off," McAllister said.

The department also has increased surveillance on "a number of people" and targeted two Bluffton neighborhoods that have the potential for organizing gang activity, McAllister said.

While the recent graffiti indicates at least a presence of gang activity or "wannabe" gang activity, Bluffton and Beaufort County law enforcement officials said there's little evidence gangs have been able to establish themselves here.

"That mentality is here," said Capt. Steve Mendoza, a gang specialist with the Beaufort County Sheriff's Office. "But I'm not aware of any huge problems. (Gangs) don't have the visibility here that they have in other areas where there's an established problem."

Beaufort County Sheriff P.J. Tanner said all graffiti in the county is photographed and sent to national crime agencies to determine its authenticity. So far, he said, all reports that have come back indicate the messages were "copycat, wannabe graffiti."

The placement and timing of the recent messages appear to be in an effort to "establish themselves and their dominance in the area in time for the beginning of school," McAllister said.

A sign near the Bluffton High School entrance on Buckwalter Parkway is scrawled with the message: "PKWSX3," which could be a reference to a branch of MS-13, the chief said.

Other graffiti was reported on the side of a maintenance shed and on the walls of a golf-cart tunnel under Bluffton Parkway in Pinecrest, McAllister said.

MS-13, also known as Mara Salvatrucha, is a large gang composed mostly of Salvadorans, Hondurans and other Central Americans. The gang, involved in criminal activities in Central America and the United States, is known for drug smuggling, human trafficking and violent crimes. MS-13 strongholds have historically been in Washington, Miami and southern California.

While there's no firm evidence of an MS-13 presence in the county, the gang has been active for a number of years in Savannah, authorities said.

"We know gangs are a problem in Savannah, in Orangeburg County and other places around us," McAllister said. "It would be illogical to think that (gangs) would not be here organizing. We know areas here are ripe for it."

In 2004 and 2005, Beaufort County had 47 gang-related offenses, according to data from the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division.

Statewide, gang activity has been on the rise. The number of gangs in South Carolina more than tripled between 2004 and 2006. Today, there are at least 325 gangs with a combined membership of more than 1,600 in South Carolina, according to SLED.

Beaufort County law enforcement had downplayed gang involvement for years to avoid legitimizing the groups, but last month, Tanner said a new law would change the county's approach.

The sheriff said the law, which went into effect in July, will help police and prosecutors target small groups or rings of criminals who repeatedly commit crimes, such as armed robbery and burglary, in Beaufort and surrounding counties.

Last year, a small gang that called itself the "Latin Mafia" tried to establish itself by recruiting from Bluffton schools, McAllister said, but "we were able to run them off through a variety of methods."

That doesn't mean they've gone away, he warned.

This fall, the Bluffton Police department plans to expand educational programs in schools and add a second school resource officer at Bluffton High School, where enrollment is expected to exceed 1,400 students.

The department also applied for a grant that would provide money for officers to start a Gang Resistance Education and Awareness Training (GREAT) program to middle school students.

"Our biggest goal is to keep gangs out of our schools," McAllister said.

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"Our biggest goal is to keep gangs out of our schools," McAllister said

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Well,that 's good and a commendable goal. But how about our federal government locking down our border and DEPORTING all illegal aliens, gang members first, right the hell out of here. That would leave only our internal gangs to deal with, which makes it a much more level playing field.