MISSISSIPPI
A federal judge sentenced a member of the Aryan Brotherhood of Mississippi gang to life in prison for his involvement in violent criminal acts, including racketeering conspiracy, murder, kidnapping, methamphetamine production and trafficking and other related offenses, officials announced Thursday.
“The convictions in these cases reflect a major disruption of a large organization that incubates in our prison systems and spills over to our streets,” said FBI Special Agent in Charge Donald Alway. “Recognizing and neutralizing these organizations is vitally important, and thanks to the joint efforts of our local, state and federal law enforcement partners, Mississippi is much safer.”
U.S. District Judge Glen H. Davidson also on Wednesday sentenced Frank George Owens Jr., 44, aka State Raised, of D’Iberville, Mississippi, a member of Aryan Brotherhood, to serve an additional 10 years for attempted murder.
D’Iberville’ s sentencing marks the culmination of a 2.5-year investigation into and prosecution of Aryan Brotherhood, which resulted in the conviction of 42 members and associates of the gang, officials said.
On April 13, 2016, Owens was found guilty by a federal grand jury of engaging in a racketeering conspiracy, murder, kidnapping and attempted murder.
According to evidence presented at trial, Owens and other ABM leaders ordered others to lure an individual to an ABM house so that they could murder him for an unpaid drug debt.
Owens and Eric Glenn Parker beat the victim to death and delivered the body to a co-defendant, who burned the victim’s body for days in order to incinerate it. In addition, in a separate incident, Owens ordered the stabbing of a gang member for threatening to rape a child. The gang member was stabbed five times, according to the evidence.
The sentence marks the culmination of a 2.5-year investigation into and prosecution of Aryan Brotherhood in Mississippi,which resulted in the conviction of 42 members and associates of the gang.
Parker, 35, of Richton, Mississippi, was convicted along with Owens of engaging in a racketeering conspiracy, murder and conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute at least 500 grams of methamphetamine.
Parker’s sentencing has not yet been scheduled.
“This prosecution is the result of an unprecedented collaboration between the Department of Justice, federal, state and local law enforcement officers targeting a large-scale prison gang involved in violent organized crime throughout the state of Mississippi,” said U.S. Attorney Felicia C. Adams. “As a result of this collaborative effort, we have effectively dismantled this violent organization and sent a clear message that the United States Attorney’s Office and our law enforcement partners have an unwavering commitment to hold those individuals accountable who insist on creating an atmosphere of violence and fear in our communities.”
The Aryan Brotherhood is the Mississippi-centered branch of the Aryan Brotherhood, a violent, “whites only,” prison-based gang with members and associates operating inside and outside of state penal institutions, according to officials.
The Aryan Brotherhood is engaged in racketeering activities, including murder, attempted murder, kidnapping, assault, money laundering, firearms trafficking and trafficking in marijuana and methamphetamine, both inside and outside correctional facilities.
According to trial evidence, Owens and three co-defendants served at varying times on the ABM’s three-member “wheel” that oversaw and directed Aryan Brotherhood activity throughout Mississippi during the conspiracy.
According to evidence presented at trial, Owens and other Aryan Brotherhood leaders ordered others to lure an individual to an Aryan Brotherhood house so that they could murder him for an unpaid drug debt. Owens and Eric Glenn Parker beat the victim to death and delivered the body to a co-defendant, who burned the victim’s body for days in order to incinerate it.
In addition, in a separate incident, Owens ordered the stabbing of a gang member for threatening to rape a child. The gang member was stabbed five times.
Parker, 35, of Richton, Mississippi, was convicted along with Owens of engaging in a racketeering conspiracy, murder and conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute at least 500 grams of methamphetamine. Parker’s sentencing has not yet been scheduled.
***The DEA, ATF, FBI and the MBN investigated the case. The U.S. Marshals Service; Federal Protective Service; U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations; Mississippi Highway Patrol; Mississippi Bureau of Investigation; Mississippi Department of Corrections; Harrison County, Mississippi, Sheriff’s Office; South Mississippi Metro Enforcement Team; Tupelo, Mississippi, Police Department; North Mississippi Narcotics Unit; Tishomingo County, Mississippi, Sheriff’s Office; Lee County, Mississippi, Sheriff’s Office; Forrest County, Mississippi, District Attorney’s Office; Prentiss County, Mississippi, Sheriff’s Office; Jones County, Mississippi, Sheriff’s Office; Harrison County, Mississippi, Sheriff’s Office; and South Mississippi Metro Enforcement Team provided valuable assistance in the investigation. The Criminal Division’s Organized Crime and Gang Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Offices of the Northern and Southern Districts of Mississippi prosecuted the case.