9237139267?profile=originalBy Gangsters Inc. Editors

Two members of the Nuestra Familia prison gang pleaded guilty on Tuesday to a to racketeering conspiracy charge. 35-year-old Michael “Redwood” Rice and 36-year-old Alberto “Doughboy” Moreno admitted to dealing drugs and violent assault inside prison walls.

The Nuestra Familia/Salinas Norteños Enterprise consisted of members and associates of the Nuestra Familia prison gang as well as Norteño street gangs in Salinas, California, and the surrounding areas. Enterprise members agreed to commit crimes such as murder, narcotics trafficking, and other acts of violence.

Gang rules

Norteño gang members pledge their allegiance and loyalty to Nuestra Familia and are instructed on its rules, rituals, and obligations. Gang rules and discipline are maintained by assaulting and threatening those individuals who violate the rules or pose a threat to the organization; inside prisons and local jails, all members and associates of Nuestra 9237139460?profile=originalFamilia and Norteños work together to maintain the structure and follow the rules of the Enterprise.

Slanging dope and “removing” inmates

In their plea agreements, Rice and Moreno (right) admitted to participating in the distribution of narcotics to other inmates at Monterey County Jail. The plea agreements also describe the roles of the men in “removals” as a means of violently enforcing the most important of the gang’s rules while they were in the jail.

The term “removal” refers to a violent attack designed to remove (from both the custodial housing unit and the gang itself) a member of the gang who committed a serious violation of the gang’s rules. A removal is accomplished by having one or more “hitters” stab the victim and then having at least two “bombers” assault the target by punching and kicking the victim without weapons. The purpose of the subsequent beating is to inflict upon the victim maximum damage while giving the hitters time to wash themselves and get rid of weapons.

9237139853?profile=original“Overall Authority” in Monterey County Jail

Rice (right) admitted that in February of 2013, he was the prison gang’s “Overall Authority” in one of Monterey County Jail’s housing units and he consented to the removal of a gang prisoner who committed a serious violation of gang rules. The victim was stabbed in the head by a hitter and immediately thereafter was punched and kicked by several bombers. Rice further admitted that he approved the removal of another victim who was assaulted on April 29, 2013. On that day, the victim was stabbed in the head by the hitter and then punched and kicked by several bombers. Moreno admitted that he participated as a bomber in the April 29, 2013, attack.

Plea and sentencing

A federal grand jury indicted Rice, Moreno and several other defendants with racketeering conspiracy on September 27, 2018. Both defendants pleaded guilty and admitted that murder was an object of the conspiracy. If they comply with their plea agreements, the additional charges will be dismissed at sentencing.

Moreno’s sentencing is scheduled for January 7, 2020, and Rice’s sentencing for March 3, 2020. They face a maximum statutory sentence of life in prison, five years of supervised release, and a fine of $250,000. Pursuant to their plea agreements, Rice has agreed to a sentence of 13 years and Moreno has agreed to a sentence of seven years, both subject to final approval by the court at their respective sentencings. 

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