The Texas Syndicate (Spanish: Sindicato Tejano) is a mostly Texas-based street and prison gang consisting of predominantly Mexican American membership. Either the guard didnt know what was going on, or he did. The majority of what they do is criminal, from extortion to execution. house for rent waldport oregon; is thanos a villain or anti hero There are a couple of rituals that are listed among their practices for new members, including r*ping a woman and sustaining a brutal beating. Without a doubt, the Texas Invitational ("TI") is the pinnacle of high-caliber automotive airfield competition in the United States. The warden would later testify that Sandovals actions were somewhat heroic. But, Peterson added, the hero had seemed awfully calm in the midst of all the bloodshedperhaps too calm. 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. As to everything he had told his investigatorsnone of that was true either, he said. Instead, he wrote an impassioned, handwritten 24-page letter that his mother sent to a few members of the media. Virtually everyone saw it coming. Prospects are generally not allowed to make decisions or be present inside the meetings and are required to stand outside when such decisions are made. Other gangs have a voting system to determine whether the member is initiated or not. Sandoval knew this. Katy Vine has been a staff writer since 2002. 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. On the outside, the operation is run very much like a business, while inside the prison is where activities are ruthless and violent, particularly within the realm of initiation. However, DPS downgraded the threat posed by the Barrio Azteca gang in 2015 after considering it among the state's most violent Texas-based gangs since 2010. The strict rules and harsh discipline governing the Texas Syndicate help insure that the organizations members and associates function as a continuing unit despite any changes in membership. Sandoval did not tell his mother why he was such a vulnerable candidate. 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. (Officials also say the Texas Syndicate is far more selective and does not, for example, recruit homosexuals.) As a result, members were able to expand their control throughout the Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) prison system. That afternoon in the interrogation room, Special Prison Prosecution Unit investigator Royce Smithey bore down on Sandoval. If you didnt treat your snitch right, he would scurry off to a more grateful listener and begin his new relationship by snitching on you. Sandoval took the advice three years after Garcia gave it. As of 2000, the Texas Syndicate had about 1,000 members in prisons and jails state-wide, with many more on the outside. Sandoval buckled. The letter was not what one might expect from a former prison guard. By the mid-1800s, there were street gangs in _____. City Employees Are Heading for the Exits. 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. Gangs like the Bandidos Outlaw Motorcycle Gang, Aryan Brotherhood of Texas, Bloods, Crips, Texas Chicano Brotherhood and Partido Revolcionaro Mexicano (PRM) lack the size and structure or larger gangs like Tango Blast, but are responsible for a disproportionate amount of crime. The drug trade was lucrative, and Sandoval always seemed to be hurting for money. For his trouble, the inmates offered the guard $75. RELATED:Why 'El Chapo's' beauty queen wife says she is 'afraid for his life'. Do they spread their message and beliefs through peaceful interaction and pamphlets? This gang is one of the most notorious out there and has even been mentioned directly by Donald Trump, who has pledged to eradicate them in particular. Upon their release from prison, gang members returned to Texas, renamed themselves the Texas Syndicate (TS), committed crimes, and wound up in TDCJ, where they developed an extensive network of drug trafficking, extortion, prostitution, and contract murder behind Texas prison walls. And were there in it. 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. The impulse is to accommodate the inmate, since prisonsspiritual wastelands of concrete and metalcry out for random acts of human kindness. Texas Syndicate members frequently refer to each other as carnal (brother) and maintain a distinct identity by establishing and enforcing specific TS rules, holding meetings, utilizing TS gang signs (horns), and by maintaining a close relationship with fellow gang members and their associates throughout the state. The two inmate snitches who testified against Sandoval understated their criminal history, contradicted each other, and came off looking like dirtbags who would say anything for the right price. The inmates handed Sandoval a letter, wondering if the guard could mail it for them. Theyre gonna say you were in on it. The TS rules provide that the TS is to come before family. The Barrio Azteca gang is known to engage in a wide range of criminal activity including contract killing, murder, torture, drug trafficking and human trafficking among other offenses. According to testimony, the man who drew the magic card, number one, was TS sergeant Carlos Rosas, a 31-year-old Dallas resident who was serving thirty years for aggravated robbery. But the evidence gathered by Justice clearly added up to a violation of the Eight Amendments protection from cruel and unusual punishment. The five-foot-six, soft-voiced young man had spent most of his life in the South Texas town of Alice, where blacks were scarcely seen. I cant honestly tell you why he did it, said the inmate of Sandoval. The main activities of the TS are centered on drug trafficking, extortion, protection rackets, and internal discipline and contract murdering. Sandoval described Ellis I warden Jerry Peterson as a good man but a figurehead. After the big lockdown, metal detectors were installed in every prison unit to discourage the carrying of shanks. When Vicente and his friend Armando Garciaalso a pleasant, nonconfrontational fellowbegan to ask Sandoval if he had a light, the guard refused at first, and finally decided, after repeated requests, what the hell. Arredondo was a Texas Syndicate member. Asked point-blank by his attorney, Did you ever bring drugs inside TDCJ? It was their house, not his or the states. There was no further violence, a signal to those who understood gang behavior that Arredondo had been snuffed out by one of his own rather than by a rival gang. After building tenders disappeared due to a court order, the Syndicate's activities turned to drug trafficking, extortion, prostitution, protection, illegal gambling, and contract killing. When cocaine was cheap, he sold coke; when pure coke became scarce and heroin became abundant, Garcia seized the opportunity. Sandoval insisted that he didnt know anything about the Arredondo murder other than what he filed in his report. Assistant U.S. First, a new prisoner or prospective member is asked a question by a member. The gang also allies with other gangs including the Mexican Mafia and MS-13. Conditions were no different on December 17, 1986, which was why Sandoval was given the assignment of B-wing hall boss that afternoon. While accurate numbers are difficult to come up with (do we include associates or just full members? By the end of the eighties, the public fretting over prison gangs had dissipated. Join The Syndicate Speak with representative Astrid in the Syndicate Enclave and, should you desire, join the Syndicate Go up the stairs within the Enclave to speak with Astrid. He had lied to his own investigator, just as inmates and Internal Affairs had lied to the jurors. (Fong 41) The fact that the gangs would still find ways to take advantage of people not qualified for their gang, is enough evidence that the gangs in the prison system, find their ways in maintaining power over their victims. [4][5], The Texas Syndicate was established at Folsom State Prison in California in 1978 in direct response to the other California prison gangs, notably the Aryan Brotherhood and Mexican Mafia, which were attempting to prey on native Texas inmates. I was in the dayroom. Were he to pay his old workplace a visit, Luis Sandoval would notice several changes at Ellis I. 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. DPS says the 2014 arrest of cartel leader Vicente Carrillo Fuentes diminished the gangs influence. Paranoia overcame him. Theres no way to shut them down, Sandoval said. Garcia would later say that he told Sandoval shortly after the Arredondo murder, Man, youre in deep shit. Sandoval took a step toward the crashgate but was held back by the more experienced guard. Get these inmates in the chapel, he told them. It is seemingly a simple, humble favor asked of men in gray by men in white. A relative newcomer in the world of criminal gangs, the Knights Templar Cartel, which operates in Mexico, was officially founded in 2011 after the disbanding ofLa Familia Michiacana. They now have allegiances with other gangs and have a membership in the thousands throughout the southern United States. 10 facts about the Barrio Azteca, one of the most dangerous gangs in Texas, Mark Lambie/AP Photo/El Paso Times, Mark Lambie. Between full members and associates both within and outside of the prison system, the group has an estimated membership of around 10,000, and as the name implies, it is a white gang. Of course, sometimes a hazing ritual goes too far. No member is permitted to break away from the group. (LogOut/ At a given time, Sandoval would stand guard over hundreds of inmates. Tango Blast cliques along the Rio Grande Valley and in Corpus Christi are the region's major players, along with Texas Syndicate and Texas Mexican Mafia. Joe Arredondo was one of those inmates, an arrogant squirt barely over five feet tall who frequently provoked guards but never got in trouble for it. It took the jury 33 minutes to decide that Sandoval was not guilty. Inside the walls of each prison is drugs, prostitution, gambling, extortion, and grand theft, but no investigation into any of these things has ever been made. The letter did not say what such an investigation would say about Luis Sandoval. An eight-inch metal shank lay nearby. The task would range from a serious assault to murder. 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. But such sentiments are meaningless down on the farm. [4] [5] Contents 1 Overview 1.1 Criminal activity 2 Structure The caller advised Sandoval not to show up for his March 18, 1991, trial, and then hung up without identifying himself. (Today, Sandoval says that statement was coerced.) Then hed say, Damn, I wish I had twenty dollars to go buy a couple of beers. And Id say, Just wait here, Ill be back. And Id collect fifty dollars for him. But the sudden absence of gang wars did not mean that the gangs had gone away. West Texas Syndicate has always embraced the spirit of a hardworking, relentless underdog. 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. [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. Armando Garcia had seen this coming. Cocaine might be referred to by many names including sheet rock, girls, teenager, teener, french fries, bacon, white shirt and flour. Marijuana might be referred to by names including elbows, feed, stuff for horses, hay for horses, green and grass. Methamphetamines were commonly referred to as ice, crystal, windshields, the cold stuff and yellow. 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