Crackdown on violent North Las Vegas gang leads to indictments
A monthslong crackdown on a North Las Vegas gang led to the indictment of 19 men and women on charges ranging from murder to racketeering, authorities announced Thursday.
“We went after the head of the snake and cut it off,” Clark County Assistant Sheriff Tom Roberts said.
The 35-count indictment against the Southern United Raza First Onda Surenos was handed down last week and unsealed Tuesday. It covers an eight-year crime spree that culminated with arrests as recently as this week, according to police and the Clark County district attorney’s office.
Roberts said the sweeping indictment is a model for how authorities will target gangs in the future.
Authorities in the multiagency investigation ramped up what they called “Operation Spartan Fist” in May.
Police served nine search warrants simultaneously Sept. 30, leading to the arrests of 11 gang members. One of the indicted members, Julian Barboza, is still at large, police said.
Not all of the 18 in-custody members were at a Thursday arraignment hearing, but several who were pleaded not guilty. A hearing for those who were not present was set for Nov. 1.
Prosecutors are expected to decide soon whether to pursue the death penalty against five men facing murder charges. Clark County District Attorney Steve Wolfson said the operation led to the solving of two murder cases.
Raul Lara and Osbaldo Rojas-Gaspar both face a first-degree murder charge in the April 2016 death of Davion McKinzie. Daniel Mendoza-Bargoza, Christian Rojas-Gaspar and Julian Barboza face murder charges for the February death of David Espinoza.
Police said a third murder is under investigation.
Authorities have charged almost the entire gang, which will make it difficult for the group to recruit, Wolfson said.
“These are hoodlums,” Wolfson said. “These are somewhat terrorists, if you will, in our community who commit a number of violent crimes.”
Along with murder, charges against those with ties to the criminal syndicate include robbery, burglary, assault on a protected person with use of a deadly weapon and attempted murder.
The targeted gang has been active since the 1990s, Metropolitan Police Department Sgt. Tim Stovall said, and most of its crimes were committed in North Las Vegas and the northeast valley. He said the gang has been recruiting heavily.
Metro’s gang unit was moved from a centralized location at police headquarters to the various patrol areas within the valley in the summer of 2015. The unit was moved back to headquarters in April.
“It was a big step forward for us and was crucial in pulling off this type of operation,” Metro Lt. John Leon said.
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