Other gangs also sprang up: the Hermanos de Pistoleros, the Self-Defense Family, the Texas Mafia, the Nuestra Carnales. 10 facts about the Barrio Azteca, one of the most dangerous gangs in Texas, Mark Lambie/AP Photo/El Paso Times, Mark Lambie. When a new member is ready to be "patched in," they are instructed to go buy a new pair of jeans and a denim jacket. He was muling, said McDonald. It generally signifies new membership into a club or group, and while some examples of initiation can be fun and bring people together, others are downright traumatizing. Joshua Fechter is a reporter covering City Hall and San Antonio politics for the Express-News. While this may not be the only initiation used by the Texas Syndicate, it is a popular one and frankly makes the most practical sense in terms of actually advancing the gang's goals. Then he headed for the bathroom, a route that took him through a confined area guarded by CO II Nolan McCool. The soldiers and prospectos (prospects) are often used to carry out violent TS business. TS members will also assist a fellow member in this pending criminal case. (This inmates name has been changed as a condition of his interview.) Although, they do have alliances with some Hispanic gangs. The gangs alleged leader Eduardo Ravela is on the FBIs Top Ten most wanted list. Convicts made primitive ovens out of foil-lined cardboard boxes equipped with a light bulb, and cooked deer or rabbit killed by inmates working in the fields. For several days, Sandoval read the Bible and considered his options. If you are facing serious criminal charges, you need a lawyer who is prepared to go to trial, Law Office of Sylvia A. Cavazos 110 Broadway St.Suite 210San Antonio, TX 78205 San Antonio Office, Phone:210-468-1130Toll Free: 800-681-6406Fax: 888-566-7765, 2023 Law Office of Sylvia A. Cavazos All Rights Reserved, Disclaimer| Site Map| Privacy Policy |Business Development Solutions by FindLaw, part of Thomson Reuters. Each gang had its own hierarchy and its own rules; each member was not permitted to leave his gang, even outside of prison, except by his own death. His assignment was one of the toughest jobs in Ellis I. Conditions were no different on December 17, 1986, which was why Sandoval was given the assignment of B-wing hall boss that afternoon. Employees come and go unfrisked, unobserved. [2] As a street gang, heavy activity has been reported in Austin, Corpus Christi, the Rio Grande Valley and the Dallas Fort Worth area in Texas. The Texas Syndicate, more than La Eme or Nuestra Familia, has been more associated or allied with Mexican immigrant prisoners, such as the "Border . 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. Sandoval caught one inmate with a homemade oven and a laundry basket filled with about fifty prime-cut steaks. But now that seemed the least of Luis Sandovals worries. Armando Garcia had seen this coming. After being released from California prisons these inmates returned to Texas, often returning to violence and re-entering the prison system. In Del Rio, three Texas Syndicate members from Uvalde, TX, face up to life in federal prison after a federal jury convicted them last night of various violations of federal racketeering offenses committed in Uvalde, San Antonio and the surrounding areas announced United States Attorney Robert Pitman. Prisons, crammed with thrill-seekers and outright junkies, provide the ultimate captive consumers. The new boots new habit, like everything else, was duly noted by the inmates. So dont try. Guards have been instructed to monitor gang activity but have shown an embarrassing inability to do so. Murder wasnt his thing. Their initiation rituals vary based on whether or not a given cell of the gang is in prison or on the outside. In return, the snitch had an oversized cell to himself, plus a hall pass that gave him the run of the unit. Others have been initiated by murdering other gang members who were in poor standing, while others still have witnessed gang members forcing themselves on their girlfriend as a rite of passage. Agencies assisting in making arrests include: Karnes County Sheriffs Office, Guadalupe County Sheriffs Office, Comal County Metro Narcotics Task Force, San Marcos Police Department, Hays County Narcotics Task Force and the San Antonio Division of the Drug Enforcement Administration. a) Texas Attorney General conference, October 1999 and 2003 b) Texas Department of Criminal Justice - Security Threat Group Officers c) California Department of Corrections But the first six months is hell. Sandoval was determined to tough it out. Syndicate Initiation : Over The Cliffs, And Through The Woods - New WordJoin this channel to get access to perks:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCW2N5MbCNEM. At a given time, Sandoval would stand guard over hundreds of inmates. After you sit there for twenty-four hours a day with nothing else to do, you discover all sorts of good hiding places. Added a current officer, The only time that we can find drugs is if an inmate snitches and tells us.. But things got more interesting when Internal Affairs investigator Dale Schaper walked into the room and handed Sandoval copies of his phone records, showing that 25 phone calls he had made on Vicentes behalf were to a high-ranking TS official named Felix Benavidez. A member who violates the rules and loses favor becomes a muleta, a term which is used to mean a problem. Such a violation may result in the TS bringing its own official gang-based charges against the member who is being accused of violating the rules. The gang murders that once took place inside prisons now take place on the streets. Most gangs will just have their way with female members (referred to as s*xed-in) who want to join. One juror phoned Sandovals brother that afternoon and told him that in her view the case against Sandoval was racially motivated. So it may be a week or a month or a yearbut that hit is on.. The attorney was advised that his client would never again wear gray in a state penal institution. b. making a financial donation . Take over the hallway for me, Sandoval said to his subordinate while handing him his keys. He was arrested for driving while intoxicated, following a one-car accident that left his limbs temporarily paralyzed. It is a method of psychologically breaking a kid and has been used in many war zones in recent years, including Joseph Kony in Uganda and the Sierra Leone conflict. The Texas Syndicate (Spanish: Sindicato Tejano) is a mostly Texas -based street and prison gang consisting of predominantly Mexican American membership. Virtually everyone saw it coming. Free Quote: 0333 344 7476 Prepare for battle and place the lure in Midnight Den Cull the Alpha Wolf and Pack Travel north east to the Enclave Talk to Aventus Valenti Introduce yourself to Cleo Elsayad Talk to Aventus Valenti Head northeast to the Midnight Den . Violent retribution is an important activity of the enterprise. It criticized TDCJs good ol boy system, which Sandoval claimed has ruled with an iron fist since the penal system was first established. Hispanic guards, he said, were either coerced into quitting or found doing something wrong. Supervisors treated inmates like animals. He further wrote, I am not the only one who worked there that knows that TDCJ is linked to the gangs and their illegal activities. The DPS projects Bandidos members will attempt to change their public perception by adding new members with clean criminal backgrounds and organizing charity events. Categories Community content is available under CC-BY-SA unless otherwise noted. The members then gather a large amount of fecal matter and urine and proceed to dump it on that new recruit. There are examples of people dying or being seriously injured during initiation stunts gone wrong. 0333 344 7476. muck tool progression. This group is one of the deadliest and most disgusting on Earth and employ many methods when it comes to spreading terror. Now Turner could be seen pushing trash cans down the hall, twirling his knife in the air; nobody took his knife away. Instead, he wrote an impassioned, handwritten 24-page letter that his mother sent to a few members of the media. The drug trade was lucrative, and Sandoval always seemed to be hurting for money. Company profile page for Texas American Syndicate including stock price, company news, press releases, executives, board members, and contact information In 2006, Andres Garcia was arrested for allegedly luring George Garza, a member of rival Valluco prison gang, and then stabbing him to death. For all of Sandovals claims that the system was making a sacrificial lamb out of him, the system came to his rescue in the end. Sandoval knew this. The Texas Syndicate, unlike the Mexican Mafia or Nuestra Familia, has been more associated or allied with Mexican immigrant prisoners. (For that matter, Garcia testified during the trial, outside the presence of the jury, that Sandoval muled drugs countless times.) Sandoval was never searched, he told me, and came to learn that the only way they bust you is if theyre told by a snitch, This guys coming in today., While Sandoval said there were other guardsand even supervisorsinvolved in drug activity, the Texas Syndicate preferred that Garcia deal directly with Sandoval, a fellow Hispanic. They are primarily poor children and in some cases orphans. 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. (After the trial, Sandoval became less talkative on the subject of drugs. Once a gang member is initiated, the recruit is under a blood in blood out oath whereas, they typically make a cut on their arm to symbolize their blood in, and that their only way to leave the gang is death, either from murder from a rival gang, or death for treason. I wasn't a BeyHive member. The inmate staggered forward, blood gushing from his head and neck. The next day, Sandoval recalled, I walked into work feeling good. Gang initiation typically has a homeboy requirement, that is, one of the other members can testify that they know the character of the prospective recruit and thus whether or not he deserves initiation. 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. The organization, also known as Los Barrios, derives some of its strength through alliances with Mexican drug cartels. I cant honestly tell you why he did it, said the inmate of Sandoval. News on all your favorite celebs, reality TV, and movies. Pascual Salazar, age 36 of Austin, one kilogram or more of heroin. They have their prostitution, their gambling, their extortion. Aventus has hired you to lure the altered wolves to Midnight Den and cull them, then meet him at the Syndicate Enclave to the north-east when you are finished. The Texas Syndicate, unlike the Mexican Mafia or Nuestra Familia, has been more associated or allied with Mexican immigrant prisoners. Without drugs, gangs would have little income; without income, they would have little power over the system. Two years after lighting his first cigarette, Sandoval was arrested and charged with murder for allegedly aiding a gang plot to kill an inmate. The answer was always no said former Ellis I officer Nolan McCool, If the opportunity exists, theyre gonna make the hit. And perhaps he was vaguely aware that the request, if honored, would be only the first of manythat later he would be asked for cigarettes, chewing gum, packs of sunflower seeds, and more. Uneasy truces between gangs have developed. But as the weeks rolled on, as the dos and donts of the training manual began to look more and more like some bureaucrats idea of a joke, his resolve cratered. On the way home Sandoval asked his cousin to drive the scenic route. Their leader is one of the FBI's 10 most wanted criminals. Without a doubt, the Texas Invitational ("TI") is the pinnacle of high-caliber automotive airfield competition in the United States. Change). Snow flakes glide gently from the sky.The Farm Hand. The two inmates snitched for Sandoval and herded him away from troublemakers, admonishing him, Boss, stay away from those guys.. Mike Hall writes about criminals, musicians, the law, and barbecue. No one, he seemed to be suggesting, was capable of telling the truth about Luis Sandovalnot even Sandoval himself. The power of the Texas Syndicate is utilized to create fear and intimidation that shields members, ensures the timely payment of drug debts, and prevents the theft of members drugs or money. All of above. [3] While the gangs maintains its headquarters in California, there are around 1,000 members in prisons and jails throughout Texas, with many others operating on the outside. [1] The Texas Syndicate has approximately 1,300 members, the majority of whom are Mexican American males aged between 20 and 40. He took up smoking, two packs every eight-hour shift. Sandoval got up, ran into the hallway, and yelled fight twice. First, they have to kill a rival gang member, and once their kill has been confirmed, they are brutally beaten by other members while local leaders count to thirteen slowly. Either way, Sandoval was out. An eight-inch metal shank lay nearby. texas syndicate initiation. Eventually, Sandoval agreed to bring drugs into Ellis I. On the witness stand, Sandoval suggested that the caller was someone from TDCJ Internal Affairs; more likely, he was a Texas Syndicate member delivering the message that the TS would not be amused if Sandoval blew the whistle on their activities. Ten Ellis I guards who worked with Sandoval testified that they had no knowledge that Sandoval was involved in drug transactions with prison gangs. He did so and, he told me, was then given $50 by the inmates. Armando, I cant jeopardize my life, man., Garcia took the story to the Texas Syndicate. At the Ferguson Unit, for example, guards wore special caps sporting a patch designed by an inmate. Youre telling us its a coincidence that you werent down at the end of the hallway? Later, when Vicente asked the guard to phone a number in Brady and ask the person who answered when Vicentes family would make their next visit, Sandoval had no objections. Extra guards to supervise the gathering had to come from some other post. The enterprise constitutes an ongoing organization whose members function as a continuing unit for a common purpose of achieving the objectives of the enterprise. Over time, Sandoval got sucked into the undertow of prison life. Sandoval was then ordered to take off his uniform and replace it with inmate furlough clothes. Can I still get Beyonc tickets? The 18th Street Gang has grown from a small group in Los Angeles to a criminal empire with influence that stretches and indeed dominates the streets of areas of central America and Mexico, along with having operations in several European countries. Ruben Mosso, 'El MIlenio" "FBI: Los Zetas - problema de seguridad nacional para EU," January 9, 2008, "Prison Gangs (continued) - Gangs and Security Threat Group Awareness", "Special Issue: Gangs in the United States", "Appendix B. National-Level Street, Prison, and Outlaw Motorcycle Gang Profiles - Attorney General's Report to Congress on the Growth of Violent Street Gangs in Suburban Areas (UNCLASSIFIED)", http://www.communitycorrections.org/psn/publications/TxGngThrtAssessment2010.pdf, First prison gang remains a force to fear, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Texas_Syndicate&oldid=1123850487, Short description is different from Wikidata, Pages using infobox criminal organization with ethnicity or ethnic makeup parameters, Pages using infobox criminal organization with rivals parameter, Articles containing Spanish-language text, Articles with dead external links from June 2018, Articles with permanently dead external links, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, Place the Texas Syndicate before anything else, Understand that the Texas Syndicate is always in the right, Keep all gang information within the group, This page was last edited on 26 November 2022, at 01:12. While the Texas Syndicate is primarily a prison-based gang, they have many members who operate on the outside. ), The Sandoval trial was a rare public washing of the Texas penal systems bloodstained linen. New recruits who hoped to join the Knights Templar have been forced to eat a child's heart in order to prove their loyalty to the cause. Inmates know their surroundings, and they know that the surroundings are theirs. There are members in North America, Western Europe, Australia, and of course, all across Asia. Their members are behind the killing of a pregnant U.S. consulate and her husband. With what was left of his final J.C. Penney paycheck, Sandoval and his cousin drove to Las Vegas, a place Sandoval had always yearned to visit. Unlike most state crises, there is absolutely no mystery to the takeover of our prisons by violent gangs. Apparently the inmates at Ellis I had noticed this as well, for their sweet talk had gotten to him. The gang mostly deals drugs, with Oxycontin, heroin, and crack being the big ticket money-makers. The Texas Department of Criminal Justice has initiated a process, which provides a method for inmates who have been assigned to restrictive housing as a member of a security threat group on a previous incarceration, to renounce their membership with the security threat group (STG). Arredondo took the two hundred dollars, went home, and blew the money. The Farmer.For this one farmer the worries are over, lie down and rest your head, Your time has been and struggles enough, put the tractor in the shed. These tattoos commonly include cuernos (horns), and words containing the letters T and S. Running Into Fire: The Legacy of Jeff Blackburn, The Apache, the Irish Catholic Priest, and a 40-Year-Old Miscarriage of Justice, An Unforgettable Texas Tale of Envy, Embezzlement, and Fruitcake, How the Texas Rangers Became One of the Most Powerful Forces in the State, How Florence ButtNot Her SonLaunched the H-E-B Empire. [4] [5] Contents 1 Overview 1.1 Criminal activity 2 Structure But no one suspected a thing. The next day, a Sunday, the newlyweds threw their possessions into a suitcase and a grocery bag, and drove Sandovals Datsun to Conroe. Rank is taking care of them.. (LogOut/ In 1967, the Nuestra Familia prison gang (which is comprised of inmates from the northern rural areas of California) and the Texas Syndicate (made up of inmates from Texas) formed to defend themselves against the Mexican Mafia (EME), the Aryan Brotherhood, and Black prison gangs that existed in the California penal system. App., 2008) On Dec. 21, 2006, Texas Syndicate members are arrested for the contract killing of Julio A. Serrano. Their initiation ritual for new recruits includes a pledge but also a bath in a mixture of goat's blood, urine, and tripe. Yes, we know that there is some discrepancy listing a major terrorist organization along with prison gangs, but recruiting methods and reliance on crime for income make terror organizations like ISIS similar enough to gangs to list them here. Dale Schaper dutifully typed up his report, and sent it through the proper channels. A federal grand jury indictment, returned in Austin and unsealed yesterday, charges those arrested with conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance. Many of the gang leaders who had been doing time are now in the free world, spreading the gang network across the state, beyond prison walls. The members then gather a large amount of fecal matter and urine and proceed to dump it on that recruit. 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