Story Created:
Jun 30, 2009 at 5:29 PM CST
Story Updated:
Jun 30, 2009 at 5:29 PM CST
(June 30, 2009)
ROBSTOWN--Prison gang members are moving away from Corpus Christi to smaller towns in the Coastal Bend to avoid the gang units in the city.
The prison gangs know the smaller towns don't have enough officers or gang units, but the small agencies are doing what they can to prepare for these violent gang members.
In recent months, the Corpus Christi Gang Unit is seeing something new. Prison gang members are on the move, leaving the city to anchor down in small towns.
"There moving out in surrounding small communities around Corpus Christi and setting up shop because of the manpower shortages in the areas," said Sgt. Ringo DeLeon of Corpus Christi Police Department and a member of the gang unit for 17 years.
Police confirm gang members are being found all over the Coastal Bend from Beeville to Kingsville and from Aransas county all the way to small towns in Nueces and San Patricio County.
In Robstown, officers report having 20 prison gang members from MS 13 to the Texas Syndicate to the Mexican Mafia.
"They're coming from Corpus," said Robstown Police Chief Johnny Brown. "Corpus is putting a lot of heat on their gang members. So they're looking for an alternative place to camp out and do business with."
These gang members involved mostly with drugs, but also participate in human smuggling and can be violent.
"They're involved with the drug trafficking," Chief Brown said. "They're involved with the assaults and stuff like that comes with it."
Agencies, like the Robstown Police Department, are teaming up with big city gang units. They're sharing intelligence information to stop the spread of gangs into their small towns.
"We do work with the local agencies," Sgt. DeLeon said. "We assist each other and that helps a lot."
"If somebody comes from Corpus over here, they usually let us know this gang member is moving over here," said Chief Brown. "We don't want them over here because once they're over here they're trying to recruit other people to become a gang member."
More importantly, they don't want the violence associated with these prison gangs.
--Manuel De La Rosa, Area 3 News, mdelarosa@kiiitv.com
Monday, Jul 20 at 10:19 AM ME wrote ...
This is to Hanna- I see you comment alot on articles. You made a comment about the 5 boys making bombs, then you comment on here about how you are a low life-being around gangs. I am kinda putting two and two together that the 5 boys you know must belong to a gang.....hummm kinda fishy.....
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