McALLEN, Texas (WOAI/KABB) They're one of the most notorious gangs in Texas - the Texas Syndicate and according to the DEA, they are a criminal organization that works with the Mexican cartels. Arredondo was a Texas Syndicate member. Justice therefore ordered that the two thousand building tenders be replaced by more prison guards, who would police the inmates with a firm but civilized hand. Hispanics who were not TS members formed their own gang, the Mexican Mafia, which today outnumbers the TS two to one but is not considered as well organized by prison officials. Video cameras monitor the hallways. But the first six months is hell. Sandoval was determined to tough it out. Back in February, Texas Syndicate member Ernesto Medrano and some 20 of his fellow gang members were in a Dallas federal courtroom receiving multi-year prison sentences for importing hundreds of . Prison officials believe that the rivalry between the TS and the Mexican Mafia has produced homicides in Austin, Dallas, Houston, El Paso, and especially San Antonio, where nearly one hundred suspected prison-gang-related murders were committed last year. Other inmates reacted to the TS as the TS members had first responded to California gang harassment. But that was if they caught him. The caller advised Sandoval not to show up for his March 18, 1991, trial, and then hung up without identifying himself. But now that seemed the least of Luis Sandovals worries. Were he to pay his old workplace a visit, Luis Sandoval would notice several changes at Ellis I. Credit Solution Experts Incorporated offers quality business credit building services, which includes an easy step-by-step system designed for helping clients build their business credit effortlessly. Sandoval lied: No, sir. Contradicting this claim, Internal Affairs investigator Dale Schaper took the stand and read his report of the night Sandoval was arrested. Texas Syndicate . We know who youre tied to. Intelligence & Counterterrorism Division . In 2000, reports indicated the existence of roughly 20000 members. The man accused of getting into a police shoot out was a Texas syndicate gang member. Officials knew this meant that every day from three-thirty until after chow time, activities in the narrow corridor went unmonitored. And as you work there, you tend to become a product of your environment. SMU's Pony Ears is just one of many Texas college football hand signs. To make identification difficult for prison officials, most gang members no longer wear tattoos. The Horned Hand or "Cornuto" represents the Devil, Satan, The Goat. The inmate staggered forward, blood gushing from his head and neck. In his first year on the job, Luis Sandoval found himself delivering drugs to a self-described drug runner on behalf of the state's deadliest prison gang, the Texas Syndicate. All Garcia and his friend Vicente lacked was a reliable drug mule who could be counted on to transport drugs into the prison. Extra guards to supervise the gathering had to come from some other post. She had no time for a final hug, a final kiss, one last chance for her family to tell her how much they loved and cherished her. Still, gang members will frequently get tattoos to show their allegiance to their clique. Though inmates werent allowed needles for tattooing, resident artists took to using the metal pieces of windup toys. The letter was not what one might expect from a former prison guard. Due to the fact that most recruiting happens in prison, law enforcement agencies always struggled with estimating the effective number of people belonging to the gang. General Info Some prisoners do so to affirm and convey gang membership, indicate their rank in that gang, or display their ability to endure pain. 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. I dont have any money to get any stamps, Garcia explained. The Texas Syndicate, a prison gang that operates in and outside of penitentiaries, is considered by state law-enforcement officials to be among the most dangerous criminal organizations in. Guards could still smell burning marijuana and still see inmates giggling to themselves. So it may be a week or a month or a yearbut that hit is on.. He was accused of leaving a door unsecured and unguarded as part of a murder plot. The Texas Syndicate, more than La Eme or Nuestra Familia, has been more associated or allied with Mexican immigrant prisoners, such as the "Border . The group eventually evolved an internal hierarchy and opened its doors to non-Hispanic members. They grew quickly by recruiting violent individuals, especially from the El Paso-Juarez area. The single eye, or the eye of Providence originates in Egypt with the eye of Horus. This would put the Texas Syndicate in contact with several Mexican-based cartels. 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. Chip Gaines Bought Larry McMurtrys Historic Texas Bookstore. And theres always somebody, the ex-drug runner told me, wholl do something for you.. The guards were hired. In return, the snitch had an oversized cell to himself, plus a hall pass that gave him the run of the unit. Although once used mostly at Heavy Metal and Rock 'N' Roll concerts, the Satan sign is now seen regularly at Country Music concerts and Christian Rock concerts as well. Knocking Down Barrio Azteca - Gangs - POLICE Magazine Top Ten Illuminati Signs - Illuminati Rex Employees come and go unfrisked, unobserved. texas syndicate hand signs. By the end of the eighties, the public fretting over prison gangs had dissipated. Full Name: Texas Syndicate; The BA gang also imposes a street tax, or "cuota," on other criminal enterprises and businesses operating on turf where the Aztecas claim control. And as in any society, some lead while others are led. He grabbed the stash of marijuana he had recently picked up, ran to the bathroom, and flushed it down his toilet. His refusal would prompt the reply, Then Ill tell your supervisor about when you lit my cigarette., At first the young guard spurned the inmates who pestered him, and threatened to write them up for disciplinary action. It took months before someone looked closely at the gas mask featured on the patch and realized that every correctional officer at the unit had been wearing the letters TS across his forehead. "A Real Shot" Texas AG Sues To Stop $1.7 Trillion Bill Implementation On Constitutional "Quorum" Grounds; VIDEO: Ukrainian Troops On the battlefield Giving NAZI Salute; REVEALED: Nikki Haley Is One of Globalist World Economic Forum Founder Klaus Schwab's 'Young Global Leaders' If they dont make this hit, theyll become the person to get hit. The majority of these, though, were only marginally involved with the gang activities. His father died. The murder would take place in a corridor abutting the B-wing: the maximum-security area where Luis Sandoval often worked. The new boot suffered the usual abuse from veterans and inmates. Now selling hats and. Beneath the cosmetic alterations, however, things at Ellis I are just as Sandoval left them. SMU is among the Texas colleges that have unique ways of showing pride -- with their hands. Today, the Texas Syndicate is both a prison and a street gang. But I was a good officer. Thus, the former good officer now wished to disavow everything he had told me earlier. Sandoval described Ellis I warden Jerry Peterson as a good man but a figurehead. [3] Syndicate members have been known to carry out contract killings for Los Zetas, the paramilitary wing of the Gulf Cartel. As a former prison gang member, I'm ashamed to look in the mirror because my failures are staring back at me. As a result, the Mexikanemi and the Texas Syndicate begrudgingly recognized Barrio Azteca. Sandoval is one of more than sixty TDCJ guards who have been indicted by McDonalds Special Prison Prosecution Unit over the past six years for felony offenses. The field for their activities, though fertile, was finite, thus making turf wars inevitable. But local law enforcement experts have documented that the gang was founded in 1986 by gangsters Benito "Benny" Acosta, Alberto "Indio" Estrada, Benjamin "T-Top" Olivarez, Manuel "Tolon" Cardoza, Manuel "El Grande" Fernandez, Ral "Rabillo" Fierro, and Jos "Gitano" Ledesma. The youth gangs havent caused trouble yet, but the realities of prison life suggest that this will surely change. I was in the dayroom. It was a pleasure to deal with an inmate man to man, for once. Throughout the Sandoval trial, guards on the witness stand were asked if they had ever stopped a gang member from murdering an inmate. So wed just lay back, let him cool down. 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. As the free world would have it, there are good inmates and bad inmates. Asked point-blank by his attorney, Did you ever bring drugs inside TDCJ? texas syndicate leaders A few days later, on April 12, 1991, FBI agents showed up at the apartment where Sandoval had been hiding and took him to the Los Angeles County jail. And were there in it. And in March 1991, McDonalds prosecution force indicted yet another Ellis I guard. A host of documents relating to the trial, as well as interviews with numerous sources involved in the case, have provided chilling details of how Texas prisons really work today. The 1985 lockdown put a damper on the atmosphere but not on the flow of drugs. For his trouble, the inmates offered the guard $75. On the other hand, if his superiors caught him delivering inmate mail, they could fire him on the spot. When cocaine was cheap, he sold coke; when pure coke became scarce and heroin became abundant, Garcia seized the opportunity. texas syndicate hand signs Most notably, the Los Zetas cartel has been known to count on members of the Texas Syndicate to plan and carry out murders, armed assaults and other violent wet-work. Armed robberies, the sale of illicit substances such as methamphetamine, cocaine, and marijuana, and other crimes remain the main activities of this group. They didnt believe Sandoval. [2] The Syndicate is the oldest Texan prison gang. Yet a former prison drug-runner confirmed the obviousthat without the help of TDCJ employees, the flow of drugs into state prisons would dry up. The symbols and meanings behind gang-related tattoos - Chron What sustains the gangs is money, which inmates use to bribe prison employees. Although numerically and financially inferior and facing multiple powerful advisories, the Barrio Azteca gang managed to murder many significant members of their enemies in several Texas prison facilities. The next day, a Sunday, the newlyweds threw their possessions into a suitcase and a grocery bag, and drove Sandovals Datsun to Conroe. Facebook The 90s and The Cartels USPS Orders 9,250 Ford E-Transit Vans & 14,000 EV Charging Stations Whos on trial here, Louie? demanded the intense and steely-eyed chief prosecutor, Travis McDonald, during his two-hour grilling of Luis Sandoval on May 24, 1991. Show More Show Less 20 of 32 7. Bono Lady Gaga Ke$ha Aldous Huxley Nicki Minaj Michael Jackson Miley Cyrus Eminem No.5 Masonic Handshakes At a given time, Sandoval would stand guard over hundreds of inmates. texas syndicate hand signs Formed in the California prison system in the 1970s by incarcerated Tejanos, the Texas Syndicate sought protection against Californios. Rumor had it that inmate Jesse Turner had stood between an inmate and a prison official and had taken the blade himself. Or if they cared to enforce the rule. Dont go in there, said the veteran, who then correctly hollered Fight! Presently other guards arrived, along with a lieutenant, who ordered, Open the gate.. His mother and stepfather lived in a middle-class neighborhood, but most of Sandovals friends lived in the barrios or in the projects of Kingsville, where Sandoval attended college for three years. Armando Garcia had seen this coming. On August 26, 1990, a death row inmate proved his loyalty to the Aryan Brotherhood during his daily recreation hour by strangling a black inmate in a recreation yard with a jump rope while the latter was performing oral sex on the former. Full text of "Texas Gangs" Now it was May 1991, and Sandoval was behind bars, his fate in the hands of a Huntsville jury. Some of the states most violent criminals were housed there. The answer was always no said former Ellis I officer Nolan McCool, If the opportunity exists, theyre gonna make the hit. White Knights (Texas) White Prison Gangs. When asked about it, Sandoval testified that the report merely contained Schapers accusations, which Sandoval denied then and would deny now, under oath. The only witnesses who said that Sandoval had anything to do with the murder of inmate Joe Arredondo were two convicted felons: Carlos Rosas, a Texas Syndicate member who confessed to actually stabbing Arredondo but was offered a favorable deal in exchange for his testimony; and Ruben Ortiz, a convicted murderer and Texas Syndicate sex slave who was paroled after he agreed to testify. A long, metal objecta homemade knife, or shankprotruded from his jugular. (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. The Barrio Azteca gang members organize themselves using a paramilitary structure and apply English terms or their Spanish equivalent words for ranks such as captain, lieutenant, and sergeant. He squinted through the smoke and the bars and the memories. Not everyone was so sympathetic, however. Rivals: Mexican Mafia, Tengo Blast, Nuestra Familia. Instead, he wrote an impassioned, handwritten 24-page letter that his mother sent to a few members of the media. Come on, Sandoval. Texas Syndicate Tattoos: And all you see is white shirts. When Sandoval told me that, he was sitting in the interrogation room of the Walker County jail in Huntsville, wearing prison whites. A marginal amount of contraband and drug trafficking has also been registered. They have their money. The other factor that has led guards to traffic in drugs is the peculiar morality of Ellis I, where rules are never universally applied and the use of drugs is so widespread that officials have to knowand acceptthat prison guards are involved in the supply chain. (Today, Sandoval says that statement was coerced.) Sandoval experienced the escalated violence in the summer of 1985 first hand as he initiated . 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.. FBI sources have also reported that a code comprised of symbols and dots is primarily utilized by incarcerated Barrio Azteca gang members to correspond with other inmates within the prison system. Both in cities and behind bars, members of the Texas Syndicate began using hand-signs and gang markings to show their allegiance to the group. 13 is traditionally known in the West as an unlucky number, but it is also part of several other gang names . When asked on the witness stand if the hallway was ever undermanned, the reply of Nolan McCoolanother officer working the B-wing that afternoonwas emphatic: Constantly.. Gangs are a serious problem negatively impacting American culture. He called his mother, who begged him to turn himself in. The officials fitted Sandoval with handcuffs, leg irons, and a belly chain. Whats Up With All the Kangaroos on the Loose in Texas? There were many times when he said, I aint gonna do this shit anymore. And wed think, well, maybe were putting too much pressure on him. Stop Houston Gangs - Report Gang Crime Tips & Violence - Texas Gangs Barrio Azteca is currently at the top of the FBI and DEA threat list. The prosecutors of Luis Sandoval not only conceded this but went out of their way to make it part of their case. Several of them testified vigorously that Ellis I was understaffed and overcrowded, and that the unit was riddled with blind spots. The latter policy would be reversed in the 1980s. texas syndicate hand signs In a sense, you become a convict also.. At that time, the Texas jail and prison systems were under the control of the Texas Mexican Mafia, or Mexikanemi, and the older Texas Syndicate (TS) prison gangs. Sandoval did as he was asked. Look, man, I think Im being watched, Sandoval told Garcia the next day. Fifty-two prisoners were murdered in a 21-month period that became known as the " war years ." Over 50 different gangs were represented in our study. But no one suspected a thing. The Texas Syndicate was downgraded in threat level to Tier 2, after years on the Tier 1 list, following law enforcement investigations that severely disrupted the gang, the DPS says. Garcia, 38, is a member of the Texas Syndicate gang with ties to the Rio Grande Valley. Now Turner could be seen pushing trash cans down the hall, twirling his knife in the air; nobody took his knife away. After the big lockdown, metal detectors were installed in every prison unit to discourage the carrying of shanks. At Ellis I, Sandoval had never seen so many rules enforced so haphazardly. The B-wing, a loud and grossly overcrowded area, was considered the hellhole, in the words of Cade Crippin, the CO who worked the B-wing with Sandoval the afternoon of the murder. An eight-inch metal shank lay nearby. (Officials also say the Texas Syndicate is far more selective and does not, for example, recruit homosexuals.) It is seemingly a simple, humble favor asked of men in gray by men in white. In addition to Shamoo Rodriguez and Porky Amaro, 11 others have already pled guilty. 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. Barrio Azteca gang members Fabian "Shamoo" Rodriguez and Juan "Porky" Manuel Viscaino-Amaro pleaded guility in U.S. federal court to racketeering, murder, and other charges related to the gang's drug and human trafficking. More accurate investigations lower the number to about 4000, with some sources even going as low as 3800. He was a drug dealer, with connections dating back to his days peddling heroin in El Paso. Sandoval buckled. Source: National Gang Assessment 2009. TDCJ intelligence files indicate that by the close of the eighties, the TS, the Mexican Mafia, and other prison gangs had developed active memberships in every major Texas city, as well as in several small towns. Did you know that 40% of all inmate escapes occur during transport? The 2000s and Today Some rules were just too silly to heed. DEA: Dozens of Texas Syndicate gang members arrested after - KABB The caller, known as El Carpintero, was a convicted child molester from El Paso who nonetheless had managed to obtain a job, under an assumed name, as an x-ray technician at Ellis I. El Carpintero instructed Sandoval to drive to a location in Huntsville where a sack containing marijuana awaited. Joe Arredondo was taken to a hospital in Huntsville. The investigators didnt tell me much, nor was I particularly inquisitive, he said. Either way, Sandoval was out. The system snitches on one mule while protecting another. Summary ofGang Signs & Symbols: >> Houston GangsByTypeListed Alphabetically - This is not an all inclusive list. His assistant wardens run the building. Indeed, Peterson said to me that his units drug problem isnt rampant, but he also acknowledged that much has escaped his attention over the years. And the rise of gang activity as evidenced by the rash of shootings we've seen in major metropolitan areas like Chicago and elsewhere is increasingly threatening the very safety and security of both law enforcement officers and the communities we serve, nationwide. Without drugs, gangs would have little income; without income, they would have little power over the system. Id say about eighty percent of the inmates knew he was dealing clamed one inmate who was close to the action. Sandoval picked up the marijuana and smuggled it into Ellis Ifrightened every step of the way, he told me, that someone might notice the smell of marijuana and search him. Around the same time, prison officials expressed concern about the fifty or sixty members of the two Los Angeles-based black street gangs, the Bloods and the Crips, that had recently entered the system. 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. None of them knew anything about Sandoval and drugs. They ally with the Texas Mafia; Dirty White Boys, and Border Brothers. The Texas Syndicate's activities include drug trafficking, extortion, prostitution, protection, gambling, and contract murder. Several weeks after the jurys verdict, he told me over the phone that he wished to recant everything he had said to me on tape about his involvement with drugs. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. Nothing during three weeks of by-the-book lectures at the Texas Department of Criminal Justice training academy had prepared him for the helplessness he felt as a lone correctional officer constantly surrounded by violent criminals. Founded In: 1970s Sandoval got up, ran into the hallway, and yelled fight twice. The Texas Syndicate also operates in state and federal prisons across the United States, with significant activity being reported at FCI Oakdale in Louisiana and San Quentin State Prison in California, as well as some representation in the Florida Department of Corrections. In San Antonio, federal, state and local authorities have arrested twelve Texas Mexican Mafia (TMM) members and associates on federal drug charges in connection with a methamphetamine/heroin/cocaine trafficking operation in the San Antonio area, announced U.S. Attorney John F. Bash; Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Special Agent in Charge Other weapons were by-products of inmate ingenuity, as in the case of Cosmo, the death row inmate who fashioned a bomb out of matchstick tips and an asthma inhaler and blew a hole in his cell wall. Gang members may change or modify the tattoos as corrections officials and law Leave them on the floor! said Sandoval. The mule, they believed, had done the drugs himself. Sandoval told me that he took the money, though he denied it in court. The gate opened. But the defendants earnest tone suggested that this was itself an injusticethat the prison system had asked the impossible of prison guards and was now punishing Sandoval for the states shortcomings. Sandoval, in the meantime, worked at J.C. Penney in Plano. Every time law enforcement thought that they had knocked out or retired the Eme organization, they found that the Eme came back again. Ten Ellis I guards who worked with Sandoval testified that they had no knowledge that Sandoval was involved in drug transactions with prison gangs. Marshals North Texas Fugitive Task Force, including DPS Special Agents, located and arrested GONZALEZ at a local motel in Lubbock.GONZALEZ is a violent offender with a history of aggravated robbery, aggravated assault . They use any means necessary in an attempt to control their . The impulse is to accommodate the inmate, since prisonsspiritual wastelands of concrete and metalcry out for random acts of human kindness. (This inmates name has been changed as a condition of his interview.) We spoke to hundreds of prison gang members - here's what they said Sgt. Never let a member down; 7. The brutality of the murder, coupled with Sandovals complete inability to prevent it, made quite an impression on the young guard. The following day, Chaplain Alexander Taylor, who witnessed Sandovals efforts, wrote the CO III a letter of commendation. Texas | Fox News Over time, Sandoval got sucked into the undertow of prison life. I looked up and as he was running by, he looked at melike he wanted to cry, you know? texas syndicate hand signsjack paar cause of death. texas syndicate hand signs - the-last-spartans.de Just as he entered, Sandoval heard someone yell, Hes on the floor! But the report was not a signed confession. Four Uvalde Texas Syndicate Members Sentenced to Life in Federal Prison One Ellis I officer reported that in 1986, between one hundred and two hundred gallons of chock was discovered on a weekly basis within the unit. The sign represents the evil eye floating above the pyramid. Go to the shop Go to the shop. school of professional studies acceptance rate duplexes for rent in lebanon, mo duplexes for rent in lebanon, mo Sandoval did not tell his mother why he was such a vulnerable candidate. To the public, the saga of Luis Sandoval will be a shocking revelation of how Texas prisons have spawned an organized crime wave that afflicts the entire state. Leslie Zepeda died the day after Christmas. Gangs. - 956 RGV Gangs A week later another juror wrote Sandoval a four-page letter, expressing her chagrin that he had been put through all the agony. It seemed that everywhere Sandoval went, there was Vicente, pushing his broom across the floor, sometimes waving or offering a greeting to the new boot, but never badgering him. [1], The history of the group and documented acts of violence in other jurisdictions warrant their certification as a Security Threat Group. If he refused to do the favor, they could always snitch on him for lighting an inmates cigarettethough Sandoval didnt think either was that type of inmate. HANDS SIGNS PART 2: SATANIC ALLEGIANCE - Jesus-is-Savior.com There are only weak inmates and strong inmates. In this role, you will be required to transport the signs to the customer's location, prepare the sig. Well, so does the inmate. He had a one-week prison furlough coming up; the gang didnt want to spook him, fearing that he might not return to Ellis I. Understand that the Texas Syndicate is always in the right; 5. Nope, the Arizona election is NOT over yet (Video - stateofthenation.co On the way home Sandoval asked his cousin to drive the scenic route. At the same time, rules in prison became stricter. Armando, I cant jeopardize my life, man., Garcia took the story to the Texas Syndicate. They often use the letters "BA" or numbers "21" as their identifying symbols and tattoos. Texas Syndicate - unitedgangs.com In your house you can walk around in the dark and not bang your shins because you know every square inch, said a former Ellis I officer. Leaders direct members to forward a portion of their profits to Barrio Azteca members in prison and to their lawyers. Any gang member who's spent any time in custody has practiced slipping out of handcuffs and shackles, and you can bet one or more of them carry jail-made handcuff keys. Bring on the Shiplap. Today, Sandoval says he mailed the letter and others like it with a kind heart but with bad judgment. And in an institution where judgment allowed some inmates to flaunt dangerous weapons while officials looked the other way, mailing the letter seemed like a minor transgression. Arredondo took the two hundred dollars, went home, and blew the money. Tattoos The TM tattoo consists of the letters "TM" with one or all of the bottom tips of the letters shaped like devil's tails and/or arrowheads.

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