Gangland

Denver, Colorado, the 303 - gateway to the Rockies and the playgrounds of the wealthy, is home to something sinister-- hardcore gangsters. And one gang, the notorious North Side Mafia, or NSM, rules the city's northwest side. This Hispanic gang is one of Denver's largest. NSM is home grown, fearless and always ready to throw down with their enemies.

Logan Heights is the most notorious Hispanic street gang in San Diego. With over 400 soldiers, the gang outnumbers all of their enemies combined. Logan Heights makes its money selling marijuana, cocaine, and methamphetamines on the streets of the city. The gang has a storied history as the hit squad for one of the most feared drug organizations in the world, The Tijuana Cartel.

The Devils Diciples are the most notorious Outlaw Biker gang in Detroit, Michigan. These "one-percenters" have built a criminal network of drug trafficking, prostitution, extortion, and even murder for hire. The Devils Diciples have built a violent reputation in "The D", but it wasn't until they recruited Billy "Wadd" Smith that the Diciples had a bona fide moneymaker in their ranks.

Gangster Killer Bloods of South Carolina The Gangsta Killer Bloods are terrorizing Columbia, South Carolina. Known as the GKB's, they dominate the crack cocaine trade here. The Gangsta Killer Blood's have spread like a cancer through the streets of the city. They battle rivals like the Folk Nation in an all-out war where public shootouts are commonplace. Thanks to the GKB's, South Carolina remains the bloody South.

Oklahoma City is home to one of the most maniacal gangs in the country - the South Side Locos. With over 600 members, the Hispanic gang is the city's most violent. The Locos, which means "crazies" in Spanish, will stop at nothing to gain control of lucrative drug turf, even if it means killing. The South Side Locos are known to hunt their rivals - and will stop at nothing to control

Volksfront is one of the fastest-growing Neo Nazi skinhead gangs in the country. Originally formed in the Oregon prisons in 1994, the gang has spread across the country, and now claims territory in seven countries on four continents. The gang uses the internet to recruit mainly racist skinheads. Volksfront has one goal - to create a white homeland and punish those who stand in their way.

SUR-13 is one of the largest and deadliest Hispanic street gangs in Atlanta. They have been linked to crimes ranging from narcotics sales to cold-blooded murder. Originally hailing from Los Angeles, SUR-13 has spread across the United States, taking with them their lust for violence. Their mission is simple but deadly - eliminate all comers.

With a street army of over 1,000 strong, the Tri-City Bombers rule south Texas with an iron fist. The Bombers are known to smuggle drugs and weapons along the Texas/Mexico border to fund their illicit operations. The Hispanic gang defends this lucrative drug territory to the death.

Just east of LA are the wide open roads of San Bernardino County that are ruled by one gang - The Vagos. With more than 500 members, the Vagos are one of the largest and most deadly motorcycle gangs in the country. Their name, which means "traveling gypsy" in Spanish, strikes fear into the hearts of rivals.

The Aryan Circle is a violent white separatist gang terrorizing the state of Texas. Its members are spilling blood, drugs and mayhem onto the streets. The A.C. was originally formed to survive in hostile state prisons, but the gang quickly rose to power as one of the most ruthless cliques in the system.

For over 50 years the Hells Angels have reigned as America's largest and most deadly motorcycle gang. When the Angels sought to expand their empire across the border, they looked north for a booming hub of drugs and prostitution.

Their rap music is encrypted with messages of murder. They are Top 6, South Florida's most bloodthirsty gang, who began as a rap group and transformed into a savage crew.

The Windy City blows coldest when murder ravages its poorest streets: mess with the Four Corner Hustlers from Chicago and you may die. The West side of America's 3rd largest city is home turf of one of the most infamous black street gangs in the U.S.

The U.S.- Mexican border is fast becoming a war zone, and Barrio Azteca wants to rule all action along the Rio Grande. Born in the notorious Texas prison system, Barrio Azteca has evolved into one of the largest and most violent gangs in the state.

Trinitarios" is one of New York City's most violent and fastest rising street gangs. With their reach spreading into neighboring New Jersey and beyond, these machete-welding Latino gangsters are now battling older, more established gangs.

An examination of Klu Klux Klan Gangs. The Imperial Klans of America are the new sons of the KKK. Their feet are planted firmly in the hate-filled history of the Klan, and their eyes are fixed on the 21st century.

On the edge of America's last frontier, Alaska's Crips battle for domination in a city packed with drugs, money, and guns. Anchorage is the largest city in the largest state in America-- and a haven for rebels and outsiders.

Colorado Springs has been overrun by anarchy and violence ... the culprit...Colorado's largest motorcycle gang- The Sons of Silence. Many members join for a world of gun-running, drug-dealing, partying, and mayhem. Since its inception in the late 1960's, the Sons of Silence have spread and now have 36 chapters throughout the world.

The Aryan Brotherhood of Texas is the largest prison gang within the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. It was started as a means of survival. Backed by their white supremacist beliefs, the Aryan Brotherhood of Texas - also known as the ABT - has now spread to the Dallas suburbs where members are easily blending into their communities.

Known as the Gateway to the West, St. Louis, Missouri is home to an estimated 10,000 gang members. The Boys of Destruction - BOD - are one of the city's most notorious gangs. Martin Luther King Drive is the dividing line between the BOD's turf and that of their fiercest rivals, The Horseshoe Posse.

In Memphis, Tennessee, a select group of drug dealers and killers banded together to form the most notorious gang on the Mississippi Delta: The LMG or "Love Murdering Gangsters." Life in South Memphis is a toxic mix of poverty and drugs; irresistible to gangsters looking to make a quick buck.

The Best Friends," a ruthless gang of contract killers, have stalked the east side of Detroit since 1985. The Feds say the gang was responsible for more than 80 murders. This episode of Gangland chronicles the gang's reign of terror as they went from hit men to the east side's biggest dealers of product, taking down Detroit's old-school kingpins in the process.

The Latin Kings were formed in the windy city Chicago. They are the largest, and most brutal Latino gang in the country. They are also among the most organized, with a strict code of conduct, outlined in the gang's constitution. Their roots trace back to the 1940's, when Mexican and Puerto Rican immigrants settled in the Chicago area.

The Pagans started in Maryland in the 1950s before eventually growing to a membership of over 900 men in 44 chapters spread along the east coast. The Pagans' symbol is the staff wielding Norse fire-God Surtr, who is the inspiration for the gang's own deadly weapon of choice: the axe-handle.

The Avenues are one of the most powerful Hispanic street gangs in Los Angeles. The gang takes its name from the numbered corridors that intersect with Figueroa Street in the Highland Park neighborhood.

The domain of FSU – which can mean either Friends Stand United or F**k S**t Up – is the hardcore music scene. We interview founding members as well as law enforcement officials to uncover the gang’s bloody history.

Cloaked in secrecy and bound by their Hmong ancestry, Menace of Destruction is one of America’s most notorious and violent street gangs. The gang has turned the twin cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul into a battleground.

Former members of the Bandidos take us inside the most feared motorcycle gang in Texas. Insiders discuss the gang’s crimes and what is required to earn the famous “No Mercy” patch.

Salt Lake City is home to the Latter-day Saints (LDS) Crips, a gang that may look different from the Los Angeles original but is no less violent.

Los Solidos are Hartford, Connecticut’s most ruthless gang. We hear about the gang’s rise and the vicious war with their powerful rivals, the Latin Kings.

One of Chicago’s most ruthless street gangs, Satan Disciples claim to practice “free enterprise.” High-ranking members describe the rise and fall of “King Aggie,” who ordered a hit on a popular younger leader that ultimately spelled his own doom.

The Tiny Rascal Gangsters, also known as the Tiny Rascal Gang or Tiny Rascals, was created in California during the middle 1980's. It was formed by Cambodian youth gang members and is presently considered the largest Asian Street gang in the United States.

History explores that world of La Gran Familia (LGF), a violent crime syndicate of five Hispanic gangs that terrorized the streets of metro Atlanta. Through interviews with gang members, law enforcement officials, and a confidential informant, this episode reveals the life, history, and current state of Atlanta's most notorious gang, LGF.

Mongols MC was created in 1970 by a group of disaffected, Hispanic Vietnam veterans. Almost 40 years later, the Mongols have gone from being party-hearty outlaws to hell-bent gangsters: many that came directly from some of Southern California's most violent street gangs - creating a conflict of allegiance with the powerful Mexican Mafia.

Gangland examines one of the largest and most violent gangs in Los Angeles County. It's estimated that 18th Street has more than 20, 000 members in Los Angeles alone with additional sets that extend all across the nation and even overseas.

Many gangs are organized, and some even incorporated, but not many can claim to have had federal funding, like the Vice Lords. This is just one of the many unique chapters in the 50 year history of this Chicago street gang. The Vice Lords are divided into many separate factions throughout the city of Chicago and the Unites States - although two men tried to unite the factions into one nation, one through legitimate means and community activism and another through intimidation, drugs and violence. Both failed - one ended up a legend and one in a wheel chair.

"Crip or Die" exposes one of the most infamous and brutal street gangs- The Crips. The gang started as a rag-tag group of youth on LA's Eastside and quickly grew into a terrorizing force in South Central. Today, the Crips are the largest black gang in LA with over 10,000 members. Gang members give an inside look at the lifestyle called Crippin' where it is survive or die--kill or be killed.

The Texas Syndicate. They are the most feared Tejano gang in the Lone Star State, yet few have heard of them. The Syndicate is managed like an elite business, with a reach that extends from behind prison walls to the far corners of Texas. They will break any law to generate revenue but the gang's bread and butter is drug trafficking for the Mexican cartels. Now Gangland unearths how the Texas Syndicate rose to power, and the destruction the left behind to get there.

Throughout the early 1990's, a war waged behind the scenes between the two largest motorcycle gangs in America - the Outlaws and the Hells Angels. The Outlaws traditionally made the Midwest their stronghold but now the Angels were pushing into their territory and courting another regional club, the Hell's Henchmen, to join them. The Outlaws responded viscously and decisively.

Raymond "Shrimp Boy" Chow is a survivor in the gangland of San Francisco's Chinatown. In 1976, the 16-year-old moved to San Francisco with his family and quickly joined the Hop Sing Boys gang. On September 4, 1977, he was at the Golden Dragon restaurant when 3 Joe Boys gang members killed 5 innocent patrons after storming the popular restaurant looking for revenge against their rivals, the Wah Ching. The attack made international news and forever changed the landscape of Chinatown's underworld. In the ensuing years, and after two stays in California's prisons, Chow's power and influence was on the rise. In 1989, he partnered with Peter Chong, a leader of the Wo Hop To triad, to first consolidate all the gangs in San Francisco's Chinatown and then expand their criminal empire nationally. Although federal and local law enforcement would bring the group down, Chow would eventually end up back on the streets of San Francisco after testifying against his former friend and partner. Raymond Chow says he is now a changed man, but only time will tell if he's given up the life of a gangster.

Chicago's second-largest Latin gang, The Maniac Latin Disciples rule the northwest side of Chicago. Since their beginning in the early 1960's, the MLD's have grown so big, that in 2005, the US Attorney for Illinois, Patrick Fitzgerald, testified before Congress that the Disciples should be considered a "super gang." The gang has had to rely on strong leadership to control the thousands of foot soldiers on the streets. Revenge and betrayal are characteristics of the MLD's and the streets are battlefields for rival Hispanic gangs. Gangland takes you inside the twisted world of the MLD's.

Gangs have been in existence for as long as there have been humans. Daryl Gates, former Los Angeles Chief of Police suggests that there is something about human nature that draws many toward gangs-- the need for respect, security and acceptance. It makes little difference whether the country is totalitarian or democratic, whether the time is feudal or current.

Called the "shock troops" of the revolution, Skinheads form a particularly brutal element of the white supremacist movement. Violent hate-crimes are their method of intimidation and a preview of the race war they see as inevitable. It's a culture driven by the violent lyrics of racist rock, and fueled by hate.

Graffiti reading: "Terror Town," "Cold Stone Soldier" and "Stones Run It" litters Chicago's Southside neighborhoods. It's the work of BPS, Chicago's second largest street gang. The gang has a long and colorful history with their founder - Jeff Fort - convicted in 1987 of plotting to carry out terrorist acts against the US government with the support of Libyan government. The FBI classified the group as a "terrorist threat," in the wake of 9/11.

King Lil Man," was found decapitated, dismembered, and burned in a bathtub. His Latin King's tattoo had been cut from his skin, his head and hands were never found. According to former Assistant U.S. Attorney Richard Zabel, his murderers, fellow Latin King gang members, were "...actually driving around town in a cab with his head because "King Blood," their leader, needed proof of the murder." By the mid-1990's, the New York chapter of the Latin Kings had grown into the most violent and largest street gang every seen in the city. Lead by the murderous "King Blood," they left a path of mayhem that was only brought to an end by "Blood's" 18 guilty verdicts - eight of them for murder. His conviction was largely based on the 20,000 plus letters he wrote detailing the crimes the New York Latin Kings were perpetuating.

Home to 900 street gangs and over 80,000 gang members, the city of Los Angeles has the dubious title of "Gang Capital of the World." Territory means power and every gang in LA wants to expand their neighborhood boundaries by any means necessary. Since the 1990's, an ugly new development has surfaced in the gang wars of LA: Gangs are dividing by race. In neighborhoods such as Harbor Gateway, Highland Park, and Firestone, Hispanic gang members are targeting black civilians in an attempt to keep their territory free of the rival race.

The Hells Angels are the most powerful and well-known biker club on the planet, boasting over 2500 members worldwide. In April 2002, a riot in a Nevada casino between the Hells Angels and their rivals, the Mongols, kills three gang members and creates headlines around the country. Federal authorities seize the opportunity and send a team of undercover agents to infiltrate the outlaw biker group. Along the way, they uncover a world of sex, rampant drug use, and vicious violence - employed to ensure the Hells Angel's place at the top of the biker world.

Five bodies, riddled with bullets, found in a small apartment on the East Side of Los Angeles. Among the dead are a five-year-old boy and an infant girl, each shot in the head and chest. The mother and father of the children lay beside them on the floor, also soaked in blood. The target of the hit was the family's patriarch, Anthony "Dido" Moreno. He had dropped out of one of California's most notorious prison gangs and this was his payback. No witnesses, was the order. The gang he deserted was the Mexican Mafia. Since it's inception in the 1950's the "Black Hand" has been the prison system's most active shot-callers, controlling thousands of "foot soldiers" on the streets of Southern California. Most laws enforcement officials estimate that 300 homicides per year in LA County have some connection to the Mexican Mafia.

In 2003, the body of a pregnant, teenaged informant was found along the banks of the bucolic Shenandoah River. She'd been repeatedly stabbed - her head nearly severed. Brenda Paz had been supplying the authorities with first-hand accounts of MS-13's operations. Paz had been one of 3,000 MS-13 members in the Washington, DC area. The increasingly violent and fast-growing gang operates from the sleepy, middle-class suburbs ringing the city.

American Gangster is the story of Frank Lucas and Leroy "Nicky" Barnes - their rise from street punks to the top of New York's 1970's high-flying drug market. The two men were considered the drug czars of Harlem at the height of the drug-fueled decade. Lucas and his gang "The Country Boys" claim to have smuggled heroin from Asia in the caskets of fallen American soldiers. Barnes, the leader of a cartel of African-American drug dealers called "The Council," made the cover of New York Times Magazine. The headline read "Mr. Untouchable." President Carter was so incensed, he personally ordered the Attorney General to go after him. The story is a violent, action-filled chronicle of Harlem and its kingpins.