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SD gangs indicted in sex trafficking ring

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Two North Park gangs have been indicted in what federal authorities called a “massive criminal enterprise” that focused primarily on the sex trafficking of teenage girls and young women across the nation.

The case illustrates how profitable prostitution has become for street gangs — members can be seen in YouTube videos holding gold chalices and scepters worth thousands of dollars to symbolize their “pimp status” — and it shows how far a gang’s activities can spread through use of the Internet and social media.

“The kind of sex trafficking described in this indictment is nothing less than modern-day slavery,” said U.S. Attorney Laura Duffy at a news conference. “Unfortunately, more gangs are expanding from traditional pursuits like drug dealing into this lucrative business.”

San Diego police and other agencies arrested 14 gang members and associates in San Diego Wednesday morning, while another two were nabbed in Arizona and one in New Jersey. — John Gibbins
San Diego police and other agencies arrested 14 gang members and associates in San Diego Wednesday morning, while another two were nabbed in Arizona and one in New Jersey. — John Gibbins
(John Gibbins)

The FBI, San Diego police and other agencies arrested 14 gang members and associates in San Diego Wednesday morning, while another two were nabbed in Arizona and one in New Jersey.

Four others were already in custody and three remain at large.

As part of the racketeering conspiracy, the defendants are accused of taking girls and women by force or luring them into prostitution, traveling to cities across 23 states and selling sex in hotel rooms, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Investigators identified 60 female victims, including 11 who were minors as young as 15.

The indictment also alleges other crimes as part of the conspiracy, including murder, attempted murder, kidnapping, robbery and drug trafficking.

The murder accusation relates to the 1995 killing of Tariq Khamisa, a 20-year-old pizza deliveryman who was gunned down during a robbery.

SWAT officers secured this tattoo parlor and upstairs apartment in the 5600 block of El Cajon Boulevard. — John Gibbins
SWAT officers secured this tattoo parlor and upstairs apartment in the 5600 block of El Cajon Boulevard. — John Gibbins
(John Gibbins)

Local defendants are expected to make their first court appearance Thursday afternoon in front of U.S. Magistrate Judge Barbara Major.

One of the raids occurred in the El Cerrito neighborhood. During the arrests on El Cajon Boulevard near 58th Street at 8:40 a.m., an item was found that was believed to be an explosive device. A bomb squad later determined the object to be a harmless mortar round, police said.

In connection with the arrests, agents also seized various items including two guns, six luxury cars, more than 50 pairs of Air Jordan sneakers, flat-screen televisions and thousands of dollars in cash. They also found 20 to 30 marijuana plants.

Duffy said this is the second time her office has used the racketeering statute to go after a street gang. The first was in April 2011, when 39 alleged members of an Oceanside gang were indicted in connection with a sophisticated prostitution operation involving women and underage girls.

Of those defendants, 34 have pleaded guilty and are facing severe sentences, Duffy said.

According to the indictment, the crimes were led primarily by a group that law enforcement dubbed “BMS,” a combination of two gangs in the North Park neighborhood. They cooperated with multiple other street gangs, whose members managed prostitutes, booked hotel rooms, handled money and distributed drugs.

“Members of BMS are really akin to a crime family whose members were all working together to commit various crimes for one purpose,” Duffy said. “And that purpose was simply to earn money for the organization.”

The defendants are accused of obtaining their victims in various ways. Some forced women and girls into prostitution and maintained their obedience through threats and violence. Others lured victims through promises of a glamorous lifestyle.

Duffy said the victims were often recruited through social media — including Instagram, Facebook, YouTube and Twitter — with gang members starring in rap videos with lyrics centered on their pimping activity.

Some defendants attended parties around the country called “Players’ Balls” that glorify gangsters, pimps and prostitutes. One defendant, Robert Banks III, 33, could be seen in a photo posted on Facebook, in which he poses at a Las Vegas gathering with a “pimp cup” and “pimp stick” and with a woman on each arm, Duffy said.

Prostitutes were sometimes branded as if they were property, with tattoos of gang monikers, a pimp’s name or even bar codes, according to the indictment.

Authorities stressed that not all of the victims were troubled children or runaways. Many of them had attended school regularly and socialized with friends and family, but fell prey to skilled manipulators.

“These are not somebody else’s children that have been victimized, these are our little girls,” said Robert Howe, assistant special agent-in-charge of the San Diego FBI office.

Medical and psychological services were offered to each of the victims, authorities said.

Among the many criminal acts outlined in the indictment, defendant Hakeem Tayari Dunn, 33, is accused of conspiring with three other people who aren't charged in this case to kill the pizza deliveryman in January 1995.

Months after the slaying, the victim’s father, Azim Khamisa started a foundation that works with schools to promote nonviolence. He founded it alongside the grandfather of then-14-year-old Tony Hicks, who was identified as the gunman and tried as an adult.

“My message is that violence is a learned behavior, no child is born violent,” Khamisa said Wednesday. “We have to do more of this kind of education so kids don’t end up in gangs.”

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