Thread: More than 100 California gang members arrested

More than 100 accused California gang members arrested

9 mins ago

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – More than 100 central California gang members accused of using violence and dealing drugs have been arrested in a major crackdown, authorities said on Wednesday.

Seventy-five alleged gang members were arrested on Tuesday, and 26 were taken into custody during the course of an investigation that lasted several months, said Michelle Gregory, spokeswoman for California Attorney General Kamala Harris.

The operation, which targeted the Nuestra Familia and Norteno gangs, was led by the California Attorney General's office, with help from local police and federal agents.

The gang sweep occurred in the agricultural Central Valley of California, in the cities of Madera, Los Banos, Livingston, Merced, Atwater and Dos Palos.

Charges brought against those arrested range from attempted murder to conspiracy to distribute drugs, Gregory said.

Eight of those arrested were charged with drug trafficking in a federal indictment unsealed on Wednesday, said Benjamin Wagner, U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of California.

Those individuals face a minimum sentence of five years in prison if they are convicted.

As part of the crackdown, authorities seized six pounds of marijuana, 34 marijuana plants, over two pounds of methamphetamines and dozens of firearms, Gregory said.

The Nuestra Familia gang controls illegal activities in several prisons and also directs most of the Norteno gangs in central California, authorities said.

(Reporting by Alex Dobuzinskis: Editing by Dan Whitcomb)

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20110608/us_ ... rnia_gangs

Why this is not on our local news channel in California, California is full of illegals and gangs cops not during nothing when they break in citizens homes so how is this they cracking down on gangs they are lying they doing nothing but lying.......

Originally Posted by Jhip

Why this is not on our local news channel in California, California is full of illegals and gangs cops not during nothing when they break in citizens homes so how is this they cracking down on gangs they are lying they doing nothing but lying.......

These arrest were in north central CA. so they might not be on the news in San Pedro, southern Ca.

The gang sweep occurred in the agricultural Central Valley of California, in the cities of Madera, Los Banos, Livingston, Merced, Atwater and Dos Palos.

You are all a bunch of racists. These are hard working gangsters whose culture you should come to appreciate. Child rape, drug dealing and killing whitey. Se Habla espanol? Obama tells us we need to speak their language... Were screwed!!!!!

Raids target Central Valley gangs that operate across U.S.-Mexico border
By Scott Johnson
Oakland Tribune

Posted: 06/08/2011 03:28:25 PM PDT
Updated: 06/08/2011 10:16:57 PM PDT


LOS BANOS -- State and federal agents swarmed across several small communities in and around the San Joaquin Valley town of Los Banos early Tuesday morning and arrested 75 suspected members of a prison gang and a street gang.

The raid, code-named "Red Zone," also netted weapons, including five assault rifles, $64,000 in cash and unnamed quantities of methamphetamine, cocaine and marijuana. The operation was the culmination of a two-year effort targeting "transnational gangs" that operate across the U.S.-Mexico border, dealing in drugs, weapons and human trafficking.

"This was an example of the work of confronting this dangerous gang activity," said state Attorney General Kamala Harris, who traveled to Los Banos the day after the raid. Harris has increased law enforcement efforts against transnational gangs in recent months, partly in response to the out-of-control drug war raging between cartels and the Mexican army.

The "Red Zone" operation was initiated in August 2010 when officials from the California Department of Justice realized that a previous operation targeting the prison gang in Salinas had only driven them to other areas. As law enforcement efforts have increased, gangs have sought refuge in more rural, farming areas like the San Joaquin Valley.

Officers from 31 agencies, both federal and state, participated in the raid, which targeted middle- and senior-level members of the prison gang.

Charges included attempted murder, drug trafficking and conspiracy to distribute narcotics. Eight of the 75 people arrested face federal charges.

The remainder will be handled in Merced County.

Harris said the raid and the resulting arrests were significant for all Californians because of the reach and increasing sophistication of the prison gang.

Oakland police say there are approximately 400 members of the street gang in the city.

Debate about gang activity has raged in recent months in response to an effort to impose a gang injunction on 40 alleged members in Oakland's Fruitvale district.

Harris said the raids would continue.

"All gangs fit into the big picture," Harris said. "They should be warned."

www.mercurynews.com

Originally Posted by KSquared

You are all a bunch of racists. These are hard working gangsters whose culture you should come to appreciate. Child rape, drug dealing and killing whitey. Se Habla espanol? Obama tells us we need to speak their language... Were screwed!!!!!

I calls em (mod edit).