White supremacists branch out to drug and gun trafficking

(BlackmansStreet.Today) — Sixty-four members of white supremacist gangs, also deeply involved in illegal drug trafficking and the violence associated with supporting the criminal enterprise, have been convicted and sentenced to a combined 820 years in federal prison, the U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas, based in Dallas, reported recently.

This marks the second round of sentencings in the prosecution of white supremacist gang members, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said. The first round was announced in August 2017 when 89 defendants were convicted and sentenced to a combined 1,070 years behind bars.

This latest round of defendants are members of the Aryan Circle, Aryan Brotherhood, the Peckerwoods, Soldiers of Aryan Culture and Dirty White Boys.

They were sentenced for trafficking more than 1,600 kilos of methamphetamine, heroin and cocaine. They also were convicted of selling 59 guns between 2015 and 2018, according to court documents.

“Not only do white supremacist gangs endorse repugnant ideologies, they also facilitate violent drug and gun trade, putting our citizens in grave danger,” said U.S. Attorney Erin Nealy Cox. “We are alarmed – but not necessarily surprised – at the quantities of drugs and firearms recovered during the investigation.”

Gang members are vicious.

Justin Mark Nelson, whose nickname is “Nazi” chopped off a victim’s finger with a hatchet for failing to pay his drug debt.

Several other defendants including Ralph Adams, nicknamed “Evil,” and Jerry Lunsford, nicknamed “Looney,” kidnapped, threatened and assaulted individuals believed to have stolen their drug money.

The Texas Department of Public Safety led the investigation into the white supremacist/drug gangs.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Texas serves seven million residents in 100 counties that encompass nearly 96,000 square miles in northern and western Texas.

This article originally published in the February 24, 2020 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper.