operation black widow nuestra familia generals

Staff writer Nate Gartrell contributed to this report. In the Black Widow investigation, more than 20 gang members or associates have become informants or have agreed to testify against others in the case. Harriette Cole: I don't want the neighbor's kids at my house, Dear Abby: My wife said she doesn't like it, but it's part of my life, Ask Amy: I feel guilty for not speaking up about my co-worker's activities, Ask Amy: I'm your cabin housekeeper, and you apparently have no idea what I do. Ramirez told police upon his arrest as a co-conspirator in the murder that Hernandez, who had not yet been revealed as an informant, gave the go- ahead for the killing. "Today's operation strikes a substantial blow to Nuestra Familia leadership. "You're going to have this guy out there if he's going to be credible as the leader of a violent prison gang, he's going to have to be encouraging all kinds of violent acts.". The inmates who formed the Nuestra Familia gang banded together to protect themselves from the Mexican Mafia, but then grew to be involved in drug dealing, extortion and robbery.[17]. The operation, known by its code-name: Black Widow, aimed at damaging and destabilizing the internal structure of Nuestra Familia by means of targeting its leaders. And, in the end, is the expected payoff -- indictments of brutal gangsters and busting their criminal enterprise -- worth the risk of paying dangerous informants who may continue to commit serious crime while under government supervision? tape telephone conversations with gang members and set up organizational meetings in Rohnert Park, Salinas, San Francisco, Milpitas, Tracy and Sacramento that the FBI would secretly videotape. A high-ranking Nuestra Familia gang leader from Salinas was arrested this week in an FBI takedown of one of the gang's largest street regiments, . Norteo gang members, who police say number about 6,000 in Monterey County, act as street-level soldiers for prison-based Nuestra Familia, which operates as the parent company of the Norteos. In 2000 and 2001, 22 members were indicted on Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) charges, including several who were allegedly serving as high-ranking gang leaders while confined in Pelican Bay. Informant Daniel Hernandez, a former Nuestra Familia leader, is expected to be a star witness in the federal trial under way in San Francisco. Operation Knockout began last year with gang intelligence from the Salinas Police Department and other local agencies, and soon was spearheaded by the California Department of Justices Bureau of Narcotics Enforcement. This book on the prison gang, Nuestra Familia is very in depth and gives a firsthand true account of one man's life in the gang. Zilversmit accuses the government of knowing that the murder was going to happen, but doing nothing to either stop it or warn the victim that he was in danger, and he says the money raised from drug and gun deals, as well as robberies and extortion ordered by Hernandez, went to the FBI, not the gang. Operation Black Widow. The indictment handed down onAugust 25, 2021, and unsealed today, catalogues a litany of crimes allegedly directed by the Nuestra Familias command structure incarcerated in California prisons. Gallegos, 35, a onetime associate in Hanrahans Salinas gang crew, is charged with conspiracy like the others, and he also faces additional federal counts of using a telephone to further the conspiracy. For years, investigators have observed Huerta visiting Hernandez in jails and prisons and then delivering messages to local gang members. In the aftermath of Operation Black Widow, the five highest-ranking leaders of Nuestra Familia, James "Tibbs" Morado, Joseph "Pinky" Hernandez, Gerald "Cuete" Rubalcaba, Cornelio Tristan, and Tex Marin Hernandez, were transferred to the United States Penitentiary, Florence ADX, the federal supermax prisonin Colorado. "It seems very risky from a concerned-citizen point of view," Zilversmit said. "Together, the government and Hernandez ran the street operations, installing a new organization, promoting and demoting members, setting up gun and drug deals, and espousing a philosophy of violence that eventually led to the death of a rival drug dealer, Raymond Sanchez," Zilversmit wrote in a 51-page statement filed in U.S. District Court in San Francisco in support of his motion to dismiss charges against his client, Armando "Suave" Heredia. Of 44 arrest warrants obtained, 37 warrants ended with arrests Thursday. Oregon,[6] Texas, Utah,[7] Washington[8]Mexico, Nuestra Familia was organized at Correctional Training Facility in Soledad, California in 1965. Ybarra recorded the anger of gang members while law enforcement agents listened in. The federal faction didnt approve of the treaty but the state side entered into it anyways, prompting a deep-seated conflict that continues to play out. Agents only need to know that there is a conspiracy, Coulson said. Hill said she hoped the life sentences the defendants face will deter gang-involved youth from deeper involvement. At the time of Operation Black Widow, law enforcement officials had estimated that Nuestra Familia was responsible for at least 600 murders in the previous 30 years. "It's a typical defense move when the facts are against you, attack the people," said Chief Mike Dunbaugh of the Santa Rosa, Calif., Police Department, which was involved in the operation. Hernandez, as street liaison commander, previously had given a "no-bloodshed" order, and, according to the transcript, he tried to calm the situation, although he was ambiguous in playing both of his roles -- informant and gang leader. . According to Zilversmit, who represents another defendant, Hernandez not only helped the government build its case, but also took advantage of the freedom given him by law enforcement to first gain the position of go-between for Nuestra Familia leaders in prison and members on the street and eventually to take over the operation. [14] While members of the Norteos gang are considered to be foot soldiers of Nuestra Familia, being a member of Nuestra Familia itself does not signify association as a Norteo. On that day, police undercover vehicles followed the gang members through the streets while a California Highway Patrol helicopter tracked them from the air. In grand jury testimony, a former cellmate said Hernandez ordered 17 stabbings while in prison. She previously covered D.C. politics and California lawsuits for McClatchy's publications, including the Sacramento Bee, as a national real-time reporter. But by April 2001, government agents began to lose control of their prized informant. ", Such is the risk the government runs in using criminal informants to help law enforcement efforts. 1962(d) Racketeering Conspiracy. It's all false.". Like Hanrahan, she was often named in witness testimony in the ongoing Valley Star trials in Sacramento federal court. But officials say it soon expanded outside, and over the last three-and-a-half decades has carried out hundreds of murders and thousands of robberies, staking its claim to its turf with intimidation and violence. 3553. Slew of child sexual abuse lawsuits could bankrupt the Diocese of Sacramento, bishop says, Frank Lloyd Wright-designed home sells for $22M in Carmel, Salinas hospital adopts new name, approach, Pacific Grove: Automated License Plate Reader technology up for City Council consideration, Fugitive hides out in Hearst Castle guesthouse, forcing tourists to shelter in place, Monterey Regional Airport replacement terminal project gets $3M more in federal funding, Newsom rescinds Californias COVID-19 state of emergency, marking an end to the pandemic era, Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information. A preliminary examination in that case is scheduled for April 1. In the aftermath of Operation Black Widow, the five highest-ranking leaders of Nuestra Familia, James "Tibbs" Morado, Joseph "Pinky" Hernandez, Gerald "Cuete" Rubalcaba, Cornelio Tristan, and Tex Marin Hernandez, were transferred to the United States Penitentiary, Florence ADX, the federal supermax prison in Colorado. Here's the update on the Nuestra Familia-Now some of you might say that this org is not worth worrying about-it's the connections on the outside that are effecting business in the Santa Rosa area. A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States. Salcido was convicted of murder and sentenced to life in prison. He faces at least 20 years and perhaps life if convicted in the federal case. Montoya is among a dozen of those arrested Thursday who face charges in federal court, where mandatory sentences for drug and gun crimes often mean longer prison terms. Summer Lin covers breaking news and general assignment for The Mercury News. " Hernandez: "Yeah. While the NF was composed of a relative few, it exercised control and wielded influence over thousands of subordinate gang members in counties and prisons throughout Northern California using such regiments. "The more successful your informant becomes in the gang, the better, the more information you get. The NF is alleged in the indictment to be a criminal enterprise that was created to organize, protect, discipline, profit from, and maintain the allegiance of gang members on the streets of and within custodial facilities in California. Northern District of California Former Salinas Police Officer Mike Lazzarini, now a gang investigator with the Santa Rosa Police Department, was one of those listening in on the murder plans. It should bring them some reality that its not romantic at all.. "It is extremely difficult to supervise the informant," said Steven Cohen, the former chief of the Violent Gangs Unit at the U.S. Attorney's Office in New York. U.S. Attorney Kevin V. Ryan told the court that the undercover techniques used by FBI agents during the investigation were "well within established legal boundary." "Nuestra Familia will be back," says law enforcement gang consultant and former Modesto Police Officer Jared Lewis. The gangsters saw the vehicle as they approached and, according to the informant, postponed the attack. [18] The spark that led to the ongoing war between Nuestra Familia and members of the Mexican Mafia involved a situation in 1965 in which a member of La eMe stole a pair of shoes from a Northerner at Deuel Vocational Institute in Tracy. Craig Fair, head of the FBIs San Francisco area field office, said the operation announced Thursday was one of the largest gang takedowns in FBI San Francisco divisions history.. Soon after, prison investigators confiscated a letter from her to an inmate, saying she and Hanrahan planned to marry in June 2008. [21] Women are not allowed to become full-fledged members of Nuestra Familia, but are sometimes used for communication and drug-running purposes as they are considered less likely to be noticed by law enforcement agents. Dear Abby: Why do they imply my husband is a freak? Two of the defendants face the death penalty for ordering murders related to the drug trade. Another problem is that in order for the informant to bring in good information, he must be a successful gang member, and the higher he moves in the organization, the more valuable the evidence he can provide to law enforcement trying to make a case against the gang leaders. Over the past decade there have been several high-profile cases in which law enforcement involvement with informants has resulted in legal problems, including the prosecution of El Rukn gang members in Chicago. The records indicate Hernandez did not mention that a murder plot had been discussed; it is not known when agents listened to the tape -- before or after the murder. Local deputies arrested her on March 16 in East Salinas for alleged probation violations, according to sheriffs logs. U.S. Attorney Joseph Russoniello said the mass arrests sent a direct message to the gangs followers: Stop the violence. [21] Nuestra Familia members often use the image of a sombrero with a machete as their gang symbol. Operation Quiet Storm was the culmination of more than 5 years of complex investigative work. Get Morning Report and other email newsletters. For more than 10 years, one of California's most brutal criminal organizations has been operating from behind the walls of the state's highest- security prison. If I stumble, push me. The Nuestra Familia gang, which operates in and out of prisons, influences much of the criminal activity of thousands of Norteo gang members in Monterey and other California counties by ordering hits and demanding payments from drug sales, robberies and other gang crimes. And, according to sheriffs logs convicted of murder and sentenced to life in prison alleged violations! Information you get federal case to life in prison view, '' says law enforcement gang and... 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