Posted on 05/31/2008 6:23:29 AM PDT by SwinneySwitch
Federal and local law enforcement have arrested seven alleged members and associates of the Hermanos Pistoleros Latinos prison gang over the last week.Prosecutors say the seven people from Laredo and 17 from the Houston area were involved in a conspiracy to transport large amounts of cocaine from Laredo to Houston and launder the proceeds in Laredo.
Pedro Gil III, 37, also known as "Master P," "PG" and "Carwash," was arrested over the weekend and charged with five counts of conspiracy with intent to distribute more than 5 kilograms of cocaine and one count of money laundering.
Police later arrested his wife, Alma Gil, 31; mother-in-law, Maria D. Padilla Ancira, 63; and maid, Lorena Garcia Hernandez, 31, in Laredo.
All three are charged under the money laundering count. If convicted, they face up to 20 years in prison.
Daniel Avila, 28, of Rio Bravo; Raul "Flaco" Garcia, 29, of Laredo; and Roberto "Camaron" Sanchez, 34, of Pearsall, were arrested in Laredo as well, Norman Townsend, FBI supervisory senior agent for Laredo, said Friday.
They face the money laundering charge and drug distribution conspiracy charges.
At least 17 people have been arrested in Houston and Beeville as well, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
An FBI SWAT team on Friday surrounded the home of Juan Manuel "Meme" Hernandez, 33, who is one of those charged, The Houston Chronicle reported on its Web site.
Authorities believed Hernandez barricaded himself inside his home, The Chronicle reported. However, after several hours, SWAT entered the home and determined Hernandez was not there.
Pedro Gil, who prosecutors claim is a member of the Laredo Pistoleros, was the point man for transportation of multiple-kilogram loads of cocaine from Laredo to Houston, an indictment unsealed Friday in Houston federal court alleges.
The Laredo Pistoleros shipped the cocaine to members of the gang in Houston at a price of $14,500 from 2001 until 2007, the indictment alleges.
Gil and his family and associates would then launder that money through accounts at a local bank, the indictment alleges.
Federal authorities in 2002 seized an 18.35-kilogram load of cocaine from Mexico bound for Gil's PG Car Wash on San Bernardo Avenue, a criminal complaint filed in federal court Friday alleges.
Pistoleros members would store the cocaine at stash houses in Laredo before transporting it to the Houston area, the indictment alleges.
Avila is a close associate of Gil's and was an employee at PG Car Wash, according to the criminal complaint.
He and another alleged associate of Gil's, Aaron Treviño, were arrested May 2 and charged with conspiracy to possess cocaine with the intent to distribute and possession of cocaine with intent to distribute.
Hermanos Pistoleros Latinos was formed in the 1980s by inmates in the Texas prison system, according to the indictment.
Many of the gang's members identify themselves with tattoos of .45-caliber pistols, the indictment states.
In Laredo, Pistoleros members and associates have been tied to narcotics trafficking, killings and human smuggling.
Gil and other Laredo Pistoleros associates and members would meet with representatives of the gang's Houston branch to coordinate cocaine transportation, the indictment alleges.
Gil and his family and associates opened up multiple bank accounts, which they used to launder millions of dollars of drug-smuggling proceeds, the indictment alleges.
Prosecutors allege they used that money "to purchase real estate, vehicles, airline tickets and numerous services and personal items including jewelry and designer items," according to a media release from the U.S. Attorney's Office.
All those charged under the conspiracy count face up to life in prison, if convicted.
Gil's attorney, Oscar O. Peña, said the charges against his client are unfounded.
"We have not seen any of the evidence yet," Peña said. "We plan to examine the evidence as soon as the U.S. attorney makes it available to us. I anticipate we will have to defend ourselves in court."
All 24 charged in the indictment are subject to criminal forfeiture if convicted.
Federal prosecutors say they will seek any profits derived from the crimes alleged in the indictment, $6 million and property owned by Gil and his family, including land in Dimmit County held in a trust for his son.
The case was investigated by the FBI, with help of federal and local law enforcement agencies, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
(Jason Buch may be reached at 728-2547 or by e-mail at jbuch@lmtonline.com)
After awhile all those Irish names look alike to me. O'Donnell, O'Meara, O'Connor, O'Leary - I just give up, I can't keep track of who's who.
Pistoleros ping!
(Had to patch together this ping list) Let me know if you want on, or off this S. Texas/Mexico ping list, please FReepMail me.
$14,500 per kilo works out to about $16 per gram.
Retail value of an uncut gram on the streets is probably $80-100 unless its turned into crack in which case you can probably triple the profits.
And remember that everyone in the chain, from the S. American peasant collecting coca leaves and tromping them into coca paste with his feet to the dealers on the street corner is making a living off our recreational habits.
Does anyone really think we are winning the War on Drugs?
To hell with all this farting around by the Feds, let’s bring back the Vigilance Committees.
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