Date: 10-16-2014

Case Style: United States of America v. Ten alleged members of the Almighty Imperial Gangsters Nation gang

Case Number: 1:14-cr-20286-CMA

Judge: Cecilia M. Altonaga

Court: United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida

Plaintiff's Attorney: Joseph A. Cooley

Defendant's Attorney: Stuart Adelstein for Victor Emmanuel Lopez

Mauricio Lopez Aldazabal for Robert Martinez

Jose Rafael Esteban Batista for Victor Emmanuel Lopez

Helaine Blythe Batoff - FPD for Jose Ivan Herrera

James Scott Benjamin for Santiago Salcedo

Eric Martin Cohen for Jose Ivan Herrera

Sara Elizabeth Dill for Ryan Perez

Hector Dopico - FPD for Jose Ivan Herrera

Israel Jose Encinosa for Leonel Andres Carrera

Bruce Harris Fleisher for Piero Benitez

Hector L. Flores for Guillermo Sinisterra

Arturo V. Hernandez for Piero Benitez

Brittney Brooke Horstman for Carlos Mena

Richard Kevin Houlihan for Alex Enrique Somarriba

Albert Zachary Levin for Eddie Camacho

Frank Quintero, Jr. for Rogelio Perez

Andrew Rier for Brandon Jamal Foeman

Robert William Stickney for Ramon Madruga

Manuel Vazquez for Miguel Pedraza

Deric Zacca for Carlos Gomez

Description: Ten alleged members of the violent Almighty Imperial Gangsters Nation gang have been indicted by a federal grand jury in the Southern District of Florida for their roles in various murders in Miami, Chicago, and East Chicago. Fifteen alleged members of the gang have now been charged by the Justice Department in this case.

U.S. Attorney Wifredo A. Ferrer of the Southern District of Florida, Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Special Agent in Charge Robert J. Holley of the FBI’s Chicago Field Office, and Special Agent in Charge George L. Piro of the FBI’s Miami Field Office made the announcement.

The second superseding indictment returned by a federal grand jury on Oct. 9, 2014, and unsealed today, charges Robert Martinez, aka “Trap,” 20, of Miami, along with Rogelio Perez, aka “Popeye,” 40, Eddie Camacho, aka “NeNe,” 35, Miguel Pedraza, aka “Fuzzy,” 33, Ryan Perez, aka “Lil Dk,” 32, Carlos Mena, aka “Rollo,” 33, Carlos Gomez, aka “Lokes,” 35, and Guillermo Sinisterra, aka “Memo,” 26, all of Chicago, with conspiracy to participate in racketeering activity, including murder. Piero Benitez, aka “Bam Bam,” 27, of Skokie, Illinois, was charged with murder in aid of racketeering, and Santiago Salcedo, aka “Chino,” 25, of Miami, was charged with conspiracy to commit murder in aid of racketeering. Alleged fellow gang members Jose Herrera, aka “Spyro,” 27, Leonel Carrera, aka “Leo,” 25, Victor Lopez, aka “Magic,” Ramon Madruga, aka “Porky” 28, and Alex Enrique Somarriba, aka “A-Rock,” 28, all of Chicago, were previously charged in the superseding indictment unsealed in this case on Aug. 4, 2014, and remain charged in the second superseding indictment.

According to the second superseding indictment, all fifteen defendants are members of the Almighty Imperial Gangsters Nation, which is a nationally-known organized street gang that originated in the near northwest side of Chicago and spread to other regions of the United States, including South Florida. Members and associates of the Almighty Imperial Gangsters Nation allegedly engaged in acts of violence, including murder, attempted murder, battery, aggravated battery, and aggravated assault, as well as narcotics distribution and other criminal activities. Specifically, the indictment charges that the gang is responsible for twelve murders in Miami, Chicago and East Chicago, Indiana between 1985 and 2011, including the murder of a state prosecution witness whose cooperation with law enforcement ultimately led to the conviction of the gang’s South Florida leader, Victor Lopez, on cocaine distribution charges.

The charges contained in the indictment are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

This case is being investigated by the FBI field offices in Chicago, Miami, and Merrillville, Indiana, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives field office in Merrillville, Indiana, along with the Miami-Dade Police Department, the City of Miami Police Department, the Chicago Police Department, the Franklin Park, Illinois, Police Department, and the East Chicago, Indiana Police Department. The Florida Department of Corrections and the Broward County Sheriff’s Office also assisted with this case.

The case is being prosecuted by Joseph A. Cooley and Rebecca A. Staton of the Criminal Division’s Organized Crime and Gang Section, as well as the Forfeiture Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida, with the assistance of the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices for the Northern District of Indiana and the Northern District of Illinois, as well as the State Attorneys’ Offices for Miami-Dade and Broward Counties in Florida and Cook County in Illinois.

Outcome: See Above

Plaintiff's Experts:

Defendant's Experts:

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