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| 24 Alleged Members 0f Supremacist Gang Indicted |
| By TheDenverChannel.com |
| Published: 01/10/2005 |
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The Denver district attorney said Wednesday that officials have broken up a white supremacist gang suspected of being involved in murder, assault, robbery, drug trafficking, and racketeering inside and outside of Colorado's prisons. The gang, called the 211 Crew after the California penal code number for violent assault, operated in every state prison in Colorado, said District Attorney Bill Ritter. The indictment came down after suspected members were monitored with surveillance video and by undercover officers for more than a year. Investigators believe there are at least 300 211 crew gang members in Colorado's prisons, recognizable by their shaved heads and swastika or clover-leaf tattoos. Prosecutor claim that a member of the gang killed inmate Donald Mayfield at the Arkansas Valley Correctional Facility in Dec. 12, 2001. But they also said that 211 Crew's violence extended far beyond the prison. "There's an understanding that in the 211 gang, once you leave prison, you continue to support the gang," Ritter said. According to the indictment, the gang came up with its own encrypted communication. "There were secret codes in letters that directed gang activity outside the walls of the prison," said Aurora police officer Jim Welton, with the metro gang unit. Undercover officers said the letters looked normal but were anything but. "You would take the first word, the second word, something along that line, and within that, there magically would be a sentence. And we found one ordering a stabbing that took place in Sterling," said undercover officer Erin Lopez. Lopez said they were lucky enough to catch some things that saved people's lives. On Wednesday, 24 people were indicted, including suspected ring leader Justin Barkley. A grand jury indicted the men and women for 64 different crimes. Joe Ortiz, executive director for the Colorado Department of Corrections, said the indictments send a message to those inside and outside prison. "We are vigilant. We are watching, and we are involved," Ortiz said. Ortiz said gang activity inside prison is difficult to control but the best way to keep a handle on it is through coordinated work among law enforcement agencies and by monitoring communications. |
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