(Clockwise) Henry Wiggins, Brandi Robinson, Melvin Foote and Craig Johnson | photos from Chicago Police
Police nabbed 22 people involved in a $2.5 million drug trafficking operation in North Side Chicago, Evanston and Skokie, according to the Chicago Tribune.
Among those arrested were three ranking members of the Black P Stones street gang. Craig “Chop” Johnson, Henry “Mix” Wiggins and Melvin Foote were charged with calculated criminal drug conspiracy in an investigation called “Operation Tangled Web.” Brandi Robins, an associate of Wiggins, was also charged with calculated criminal drug conspiracy. They face up to 30 years in prison if convicted.
Chicago Sun Times reports police reportedly seized eight vehicles, about $58,000 in cash, 377 grams of crack cocaine and a 9 mm gun during a search warrant.
The crackdown of “Operation Tangled Web” is CPD’s latest victory in their attempt to curb the drug trade in Chicago and surrounding suburbs.
Police recently nabbed a Chicago man with $6.7 million worth of cocaine in his vehicle during a traffic stop, according to the Chicago Tribune.
Juan Roberto Vazquez, 28, was charged with one felony count of possession of a controlled substance and one misdemeanor count of possession of a controlled substance and one misdemeanor count of driving without a license, according to The AP. He was ordered held on $500,000 bail.
Police reportedly observed Vazquez loading two heavy suitcases into his vehicle Friday afternoon in the West Humboldt Park neighborhood before making their arrest. Police recovered 90 bricks of cocaine after a police dog was called to the scene.
Vazquez’s next court date is Feb. 17.
Chicago has long battled the flow of drugs into its city. Vazquez’s arrest follows the sentencing of drug dealers-turned-informants Pedro and Margarito Flores.
Pedro and Margarito, both 33, learned their fates Tuesday, Jan. 27 in a U.S. District courtroom after they were sentenced to 14 years in prison for their role in a billion dollar drug-trafficking ring that spanned much of North America. The Flores brothers are alleged to have distributed more than 64,500 kilograms of cocaine, according to the Chicago Tribune.
The Flores brothers were handed light sentences for valuable information given as government informants. According to The AP, they could be out in as little as six years due to time served awaiting sentencing and good behavior in prison.
The cooperation of the Flores brothers, who happen to be members of the Latin King street gang, reportedly led to the indictments of 54 defendants, including Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman. El Chapo, 57, was arrested in February 2014 in Mexico City.
Guzman was taken without incident in a U.S.-backed Mexican raid on a condominium tower in Mazatlan, Mexico, according to the New York Times.
El Chapo is alleged to be the billionaire criminal mastermind behind the notorious Sinaloa Drug Cartel that has funneled the streets of Chicago with 80 percent of the heroin, cocaine, marijuana and methamphetamine, according U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration as reported by Business Insider. The drugs have a street value of $3 billion.
El Chapo is a legendary figure amongst trap rappers in Hip Hop.
Chief Keef romanticized a life as a crime boss in song “Peep Hole” where he name-drops El Chapo, rapping, “I rather have my ‘migos, three zero, zero/I think I’m El Chapo, boy you worth a kilo/I’m coolin’ wit my vatos, cuz they speak my lingo.”
El Chapo was named Chicago’s Public Enemy No. 1 by the Chicago Crime Commission. Guzman is the first to receive the spot since notorious Chicago gangster Al Capone.
El Chapo faces multiple federal drug trafficking indictments in several states in the U.S., according to Forbes. Bob Nardoza, a spokesman for the U.S. attorney’s office for the Eastern District of New York, said American authorities plan to seek the extradition of El Chapo.
Harold “Noonie G” Ward, a former high-ranking member of the Gangster Disciples in Chicago, attributed much of the violence to the drug trade.
Violent crimes occur in the city is due to turf wars amongst African American and Latino gangs over the sale of drugs.
“They’re bringing them in, they sell it, Noonie told Bretibart’s Rebel Pundit. “From Mexico to Chicago, they make $3.5 billion. Majority of the violence in Chicago come from the Mexican cartel.”
Former Gangster: Mexican Cartels Running Streets of Chicago from RebelPundit on Vimeo.
The Flores brothers’ cooperation didn’t come without a cost. The twins’ father, Margarito Flores Sr., was kidnapped and allegedly murdered in Mexico after word got out they were in DEA custody, according to the Chicago Tribune.
Margarito and Pedro issued apologies as they stood before Dirksen U.S. courthouse Judge Ruben Castillo.
According to the Chicago Sun Times, Margarito told Judge Castillo, “I’m ashamed, I’m embarrassed and I’m regretful for the bad decisions I’ve made. I put my family in harm’s way and I will never forgive myself. I apologize to the American citizens, the people of Chicago and especially to the people I have harmed.”
Pedro added: “I want to thank the United States government for giving me the chance to cooperate,” he stammered, adding that he felt it was his “obligation” to help take down the massive drug distribution system he had helped build. “Thank you for the opportunity not to spend the rest of my life in prison.”
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