Category: gang

Self-Confessed Killer Testifies Against Alleged Boss at Federal Gang Trial in Chicago

CHICAGO—Sammie Booker, sitting on the witness stand, revealed to jurors that he had robbed and extorted scores of drug dealers, killed three people, and aided at least two other murders as an underling of the Four Corner Hustlers gang on the West Side of Chicago in the past two decades. And more importantly, he said,…


1st Federal Gang Trial Since 2016 Opens in Chicago

CHICAGO—Labar Spann, sitting in a wheelchair next to his attorney, listened as Assistant U.S. Attorney Kavitha Babu accused him of being the leader of the notorious Four Corner Hustlers street gang that for decades reigned on the West Side of Chicago. “You will enter a world that you otherwise would not have access to, a…


Tougher Prison Sentences Introduced for Trafficking and Slavery in the UK

Gang leaders involved in trafficking people face prison sentences on a par with rape and murder, under new UK sentencing guidelines that will start in October. The guidance—the first to cover the relatively new category of modern slavery offences—recommends a “starting point” of 14 years in jail for trafficking bosses. Sentences can reach a maximum…


Russia-Based Ransomware Gang Offline but Cause Not Clear

WASHINGTON—The Russia-based criminal syndicate behind a devastating series of recent ransomware attacks was offline on Tuesday, but cybersecurity experts said that it was premature to speculate why and that there was no indication of a law enforcement takedown. REvil’s dark web data-leak site and ransom-negotiating portals were both unreachable, cybersecurity researchers said. The group was…


Teenager Fatally Shot in NYC Gang-Related Incident

A 13-year-old was fatally shot during a gang-related incident on Sunday afternoon in the Bronx, according to the New York Police Department. The teenager was the intended victim of the incident, according to NYPD Chief Rodney Harrison. The NYPD could not provide an update on the incident as of Monday morning and told the Daily…


Prosecutors Seek 35-Year Sentence for Gang Member in Killing

COLLEGE PARK, Md.—Federal prosecutors in Maryland are seeking a 35-year prison sentence for a gang member who pleaded guilty to participating in the killing of a 16-year-old boy who was stabbed and cut more than 100 times before his body was set on fire. A judge is scheduled to sentence Kevin Alexis Rodriguez-Flores on July…


‘We Have Not Committed That Big a Crime,’ Pakistani Groomer Tells UK Deportation Panel

Two men who were part of the notorious Rochdale grooming gang are fighting against a decision to deport them from the UK. Adil Khan, 51, and Qari Abdul Rauf, 52, have been told they are to be sent back to Pakistan for the public good after both were part of a gang convicted of a…


‘If I Can Do It, Anyone Can’: Former Inmate Graduates With Honors From Cal State Long Beach

A Long Beach man who spent more than three decades in prison recently graduated from Cal State Long Beach this month, with honors. He is now awaiting acceptance into a master’s program in social work at the same university. Joseph Valadez spent half his adult life in prison, but he’s not letting that stop him…


213,000 UK Children and Teens at Risk of Serious Violence as Gang and Drug Crimes Soar: Study

Soaring gang crime and drug dealing have put over 213,000 children and young people in the UK at risk of serious gang-related violence due to a toxic mixture of high crime levels in the community and low family incomes, a new study has shown. Five percent of all 11–17-year-olds in England are vulnerable to involvement…