From kissing a crown before the supreme leader to how they cross their arms is all regulated, the authors note. We discounted it at the time, but information developed over the years and culminated in hard evidence. First it took about four years to bring the killers to trial. Financials for Consortium of Physicians From Latin America. [61] The gang's second-in-command, Vicente "Disciple Killer" (DK) Garcia, was sentenced to forty years in prison on related charges on February 11, 2013. (Photo by Nicolas Enriquez) The initials ALK, ALKN, ALKQN, ADR, LK, LKN. Carlos was scheduled to be paroled in two days when the hit took place in July, 1983. [98] In February 2011, Velastegui had an additional four years added to his sentence after being convicted of directing the gang from prison, while lieutenants Jose Fabricio Icaza and Maria Torres were sentenced to three-and-a-half years' and two years' imprisonment, respectively. Membership is predominantly Ecuadorian, although other Latin American and Spanish youths have also been recruited. To support the conspiracy, Vallodolid murdered Victor Lusinski in Hammond on April 12, 2009. [33], Following the 1996 trial and conviction of Luis Felipe,[34] Antonio Fernandez, who was blessed as the Inca and Supreme Crown of New York State,[35] knelt with other Latin Kings in front of the Federal District Court in Manhattan and was quoted as stating, "It's time for a fresh start Now they can't hold our past against us. : Five pointed crown, five pointed star, lions head with crown, code of armor. The Latin Kings is a gang that started in the mid-1950s in Humboldt Park, an urban neighborhood of Chicago as a social organization to help Latinos but in the late 1960s began making money from drug sales. [31] In 1991, Felipe was returned to prison after a short release for parole violations stemming from the receipt of stolen goods. [65], The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) began investigating the Latin Kings' Maryland-based Royal Lion Tribe following the firebombing of a house in Rockville on January 8, 2008. . : Primarily Correctional Facilities and large metropolitan areas throughout Florida, Connecticut, Chicago, New York, New Jersey, Mexico, New Mexico, California, Illinois, Wisconsin, Iowa, Indiana, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island. Fernandez was eventually permitted, though under house arrest, to attend monthly universal meetings. The GD's and the Latin Kings spread the word amongst themselves: don't eat on the main linetonight. Members of their own gang, cooperating upstairs in the cell house, helped next. Shortly before the bells rung for the inmates to go to evening chow in the inmate dining room, two gangs already had much advance warning about what not to eat that night. Members must set a good example to other gang members, as well as Latino community in general. [95], The Latin Kings in Spain were founded in Madrid in February 2002 by Ecuadorian national Eric Javier Vara Velastegui. Italians and Portuguese have been found to be members of the gang. : Chicago Latin Kings, eta and Brotherhood. The NYPD further notes that "members should never become involved in a physical relationship with another member's spouse." The Latin Kings street gang was formed in Chicago in the 1940s and consisted predominantly of Puerto Rican and Mexican males. After the arrest, members of the group claimed it was actually the gang's leader who threatened them to engage in such activity. A lot of groups were formed, such as "Noble Knights" (who have ties to today's Latin Kings) or "Young Lords". The Latin King members commemorate three times throughout the year. About two years later, when he was in the Illinois State Penitentiary, inmate Rolez would get his "violation" for disrespecting the southside leader of the ALKN. CONTACT: Latino Community Foundation - 235 Montgomery Street, Suite 1160, San Francisco, CA 94104. info@latinocf.org | 415-236-4020 Typical member has an average of 16.8 prior arrests. Latin Kings have chapters all across the US. The first phase of the investigation, went after the Lawrence chapter of the ALKQN, was converted to an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force/High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area case involving numerous federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies. The typical report we would get from LK members was this: "When Luis Rosa was imprisoned at Stateville the SGD's (Satans Gangster Disciples) tried to pull him their way because he is a bomb expert, but we got him to ride under our flag instead, he taught us how to make some wicked shit down there, Rosa taught us how to make some shit with batteries and remote control with a cell phone, taught us stuff about wiring bombs, taught us how to make homemade napalm, it was toxic substance, like a gluey toxic substance, some killer shit to make Molotov cocktails out of". At the local level, groups of Latin Kings are organized into "tribes." The indictment alleges that in the spring of . Then we got lucky. [31] Latin Kings and Queens began appearing en masse at political demonstrations in support of the Latino community. Let us share some information from middle-management leaders of the Latin Kings who were in fact in this same penitentiary and were directly knowledgeable of the Kush assassination: "Kush was the type of officer who came to work to do his job, he was young. According to theCanadian Journal of Sociology, the Latin Kings group developed between 1940-1960 in Chicago, Illinois, as a community to help lessen the impact of immigration. That left Starks and Cabrera. When a member is absent for the fourth time without a valid excuse, they are discharged from the organization. The general male members are called Reyes or Kings; their wives or girlfriends are called Queens. 57.3 percent have been a shooter in a drive-by shooting. Abig part of the contemporary organization structure was created on the basis of the Chicago "Motherland" chapter in 1986, when Luis Felipe (King Blood) established the "Bloodline" chapter in New York, positioning himself as the leader. Additionally, a 301 Moved Permanently error was encountered while trying to use an ErrorDocument to handle the request. [78] Nine were convicted of various crimes under the RICO act in August 2013, including Jorge Peter "King Jay" Cornell founder of the Latin Kings in North Carolina who was sentenced to serve twenty-eight years in prison. This LK Manifest is based on the A.L.K.Q.N of the state of Massachussetts. 55.1 percent have been in court-mandated psychological counseling or therapy. Days later, on September 4, 2019, a co-conspirator was captured in a video recording purchasing 186 grams of cocaine from members of the New Bedford chapter in a deal facilitated by Thomas. In 1986, while in prison, Felipe started his own chapter of the Latin Kings known as the Bloodline. The Latin Kings are members of the People Nation alliance of gangs , and are therefore opposed to the rival Folk Nation gang alliance. Those who severely break the rules end up on "beat-down on sight" and "terminate on sight" lists meaning the hit list. We continued to be skeptical of such accounts. King Blood) fled to New York. Our information comes from the 2nd in command (a Prince) of the gang at that time who is now a federal informant in the witness protection program. Keep in mind, the East Coast Latin Kings have a very different written constitution than that of the original Chicago Latin Kings. Gil was sentenced to life in prison. In 1981, the leader of Chicago's southside chapter, one Raul Gonzalez (AKA "Baby King") of the Latin Kings had a "run in" with a member of the northside chapter of the Latin Kings. Now in hiding, the Chicago twin testifies against the alleged Mexican cartel boss", "New documents give inside look at Holland Latin Kings, drugs, violence", "Prison Gangs (continued) Gangs and Security Threat Group Awareness", "Los Solidos gang leader sentenced to 14 life terms", "Witnesses describe scene of February gang-related shooting in Holland Township", "United Blood Nation history, terminology, background", "Latin Kings Live, Die By Rigid Organization", "Gangland: Divide and Conquer DVD, View All, HISTORY Shop", "Latin Kings gang members charged in murder, racketeering, drug offenses", "Gang Profile: The Latin Kings | Office of Justice Programs", "Almighty Latin King and Queen Nation of New York and Environs | Office of Justice Programs", "Testimony offers rare look inside Latin Kings gang Chicago Tribune", "Latin King Gets 60-Year Sentence for '93 Murder", "Leader of Latin Kings Is Convicted in Slayings", "Latin Kings: A Street Gang Story - Trailer - Cast - Showtimes", "FBI: Arrests wipe out Latin Kings leadership", "Salcedo v. 8.9- Age first met someone who was in a gang. The decision to join the Almighty Latin King and Queen Nation is one that affects every aspect of your life as well as everyone in it. According to theNYPD, no one is allowed to speak at meetings without a permission. With a little hacking, off went one leg, then the other. The largest Latino gang in Chicago, and perhaps in the United States, are the Latin King and Queen Nation. As an Almighty Latin King Nation under one sun protected by your love and guidance we bring our right fist upon our heart for sincerity, love, wisdom, strength, knowledge and understanding; three hundred-sixty degrees of strong King wisdom. a leap in logic, by which a necessary part of an equation is omitted. [22], The hierarchy rises to regional officers and ultimately to two supreme regional "Incas" based in Chicago. The 2 days will be on the 11th & 12th of every . Starks was spared the death penalty (see: Jerry Shnay, "Inmate is spared death penalty: Prisoner convicted in guard's death awaits sentencing",Chicago Tribune, March 15, 1994). The Latin King gang is one of the most violent gangs in the United States today, with leaders unafraid to order "hits" on correctional officers and followers unashamed to obey their orders. As per theNYPD, one of their rules dictates that no member should even think of relying on a law enforcement organizations as a credible source of information. Vera was praised during the meeting and stated "These kids are hope for our liberation struggle. Keeping to themselves while incarcerated comes with a general distrust of the law. Blood was everywhere. Furthermore, meetings are obligatory, and a member has to have a justified reason to be absent. : Five Black followed by five Gold for members, five Black followed by two Gold for executive members. Latin Kings believe Once a King, always a King and subscribe to an all for one mentality. In the late 1970's the Latin Kings took down a national guard armory making away with a number of military weapons. The history of this gang is written in blood, with episodes so bizarre that they read like chapters from a pulp fiction novel. The gang's illegal activities were uncovered during a multi-year investigation conducted under the umbrella of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF). [66], Operation Dethrone was an investigation by the Western Massachusetts Gang Task Force, consisting of the FBI, the Chicopee Police Department, the Hampden County Sheriff's Department, the Holyoke Police Department, the Massachusetts State Police, the Springfield Police Department, and the West Springfield Police Department. In our gang you cannot order a murder of a correctional officer without it being approved and called by the top leader (Lord Gino).". However, at odds with such practices is the gang's constitutional rule that vandalism such as graffiti is "strongly discouraged" likely due to their claims as a legitimate organization, as noted by the NYPD. According to Wes Daily, detective and head of the East Coast Gang Investigators Association, "when you compare them to other street gangs like the Bloods and the Crips, none can compare to the organization of the Kings" (via The Eagle-Tribune). [48], Sixteen Latin Kings members, included the four highest-ranking members in the state, were arrested in Bridgeport and New Haven on June 30, 1994 and charged with conspiring to sell cocaine and heroin. 64.8 percent have been "violated" by their own gang. According to a report by the Madrid government commission, there are approximately one-hundred active members and six-hundred associates in the city. 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