Please subscribe to keep reading. Lizard has a thick handlebar mustache, broad shoulders, and is engraved with prison tattoos in Old English script. Well, if youre upset with the content, the First Amendment says Too bad. Since prisoners cant mail one another, Lizard began writing Kayln Santiago, a friend from Boise. There was also the lean and smooth figure of Gerald "Cuete" Rubalcaba, the gang's most powerful captain, whose job inside Pelican Bay, a fellow gang member told the feds, was to "keister" the. I am just as dangerous as they are.. Hed picked up an ounce of weed at Rohnert Park and smoked a few joints with his buddy Israel Silent Mendoza. I did what I had to do, he says. Then at fourteen, Hernandez began to glimpse a different world. Its not realistic to integrate them now, said Holguin, now retired from the Department of Corrections. and manufacturers. He was a criminal too. He pleaded guilty to arranging two murders from prison, and will be sentenced to life in prison in December, along with the gangs generals. That night, Holguin led a three-car caravan of police investigators, federal agents, and prison investigators to meet Lizard. of Tulare County. Just dont go out looking for it and doing anything., Ramirez replied, Its in motion. He could shank n roll, as the prisoners say. Gratton stands only five foot seven, but his bold tattoos did the talking. This was our college, Lizard said. Zilversmit said the feds were preoccupied with preserving their investigation instead of saving lives. Dozens of Napans who are homeless will soon find permanent housing in a former city motel. After Gratton stabbed an enemy in Corcoran, he was transferred to Pelican Bays infamous Secured Housing Unit the college for prison gangsters. They were getting orders in and out of that prison in no time. They were expected to smuggle in a copy of the Nuestra Familia constitution inside their legal folders and commit the document and its philosophy to memory. One of the highest-ranking defendants in the upcoming trial, Using racketeering statutes to bust the organized crime ring, the indictment carried six charges of murder or attempted murder, as well as charges of assault, conspiracy, drug trafficking, and arms dealing. Gratton sought out Sir Dyno because the rapper had a following, needed to produce a successful CD, and was familiar with music distribution and marketing. All norteos must unite with the determination to fight and challenge all those who oppose our unity and advancement toward equal justice. Any Nuestra Familia member who betrayed his fellow carnals was subject to article two, section five of the groups constitution: AN AUTOMATIC DEATH SENTENCE WILL BE PUT ON FAMILIANO THAT TURNS TRAITOR, COWARD, OR DESSERTER [sic]. The rapper says hed press Gratton for cash, but the label owner always had an excuse. One such order last year told Norte-os across Northern California to clean the streets of Sure-os. The Apprehension Teams scrutiny proved to be Sir Dynos downfall. He and his wife moved to Boise, Idaho, where he hoped the slow pace would help him start over. And I did my time for what I was doing. In the eyes of the law, that would make Sir Dyno a real-life gangster. Copyright 2023 One day two months ago, federal agents arrived at her home, and she was swept into the program. In the aftermath of Operation Black Widow, the five highest-ranking leaders of Nuestra Familia, James "Tibbs" Morado, Joseph "Pinky" Hernandez, Gerald "Cuete" Rubalcaba, Cornelio Tristan, and Tex Marin Hernandez, were transferred to the United States Penitentiary, Florence ADX, the federal supermax prison in Colorado. I was already doing what I was doing, you know? Again, he uses a kernel of truth to anchor his rhyme, and a metaphor to exaggerate his reality. , With that, let each of us as norteos recognize the true purpose of this album and come together, henceforth, presenting a strong united front, que viva puros norteos unidos.. Preparing is something someone whos trying to hide their guilt would do, he says, fingering a synthesizer keyboard in his studio. On seven of the CDs fourteen tracks, Sir Dyno raps as hired: Hes a heartless gangsta with a nihilistic agenda. On April 30, 1997, Robert Huerito Gratton arrived in Modesto, fresh from Pelican Bay. The only way to sell was to shock, he says. In the months since federal officials brought indictments based on the evidence he helped them gather, Lizard told his tale from within the confines of protective custody via letters and telephone interviews. Prosecutors say the Salinas underboss Alberto Larez estimated that over the last ten years hed sent Cuete and the generals 40, 45 thousand dollars.. According to transcripts, two carnals, Israel Silent Mendoza and Anthony Morales, brought Lizard sixty grams of negra, black-tar heroin to sell, use, or barter. Hed began his criminal career as a teenage norteo gang member, pulling off smash-and-grab robberies of jewelry stores. We aint gonna whack no prosecuting attorney, Lizard said. But the state prison guards union and correctional officials have argued that to mix inmates now would only bring more violence. Daniel "Lizard" Hernandez helped Nuestra Familia run a criminal empire from inside state prison. A local health care fraud enforcement action has resulted in federal charges against of 25 Southern California defendants for their alleged involvement in healthcare fraud schemes that fraudulently sought over $150 million from the Medicare and Medicaid programs, as well as private insurers and union health benefit plans. Youre hot, the underboss said. Nuestra Familia is organized in a military-like hierarchy, with generals running the gang from inside prison and paroled regiment captains running the streets outside. The quickest way to get money back fast would be to release a norteo album. Following his arrival at the jail, Dyno was interviewed by Thomas Ribota, another Modesto detective. Up to that point, Lizard had identified himself as a Sureo, but only when pressed. Sir Dyno had only been to jail once, following his drug arrest. Address: 318 Harrison Street, Suite 302, Oakland, CA 94607 Phone: (510) 879-3700 www.EastBayExpress.com More by Justin Berton Lizard is a Rat new AltWeeklies Award - Feature Story East Bay Express | Justin Berton | 04-21-2008 | Media Tags: media Growing Up Right new Hes got a future. He is currently a gang instructor at the FBI Headquarter's in-service nationwide training program for field agents. The shooters blasted Brown Bob with seven shots to his arms, chest, back, and legs. He just happened to have this talent, and he put this talent to use.. Lizard also sent Crazy Girl a decoding list, known in FBI documents as The Salutation Code. In each letter he wrote, the greeting unlocked a key to the rest of the letter. Once paroled, Lizard then served as Nuestra Familias highest-ranking member outside prison. A few weeks later, the rapper signed a new contract with Dog Day Records and quickly released an album called Gang Stories. They taught him to grind down plastic shampoo bottles into shanks for knifing an attacker, and to roll up the pages of National Geographic as makeshift spear handles. Had they not almost burned my identity, I wouldnt have had to be doing any of that, he said. ', All of the early motions from Gruel and his team of US prosecutors pointed only to Sir Dynos role in making the album. From the prisons to the jails, all over California, you have to claim a side, Vasquez said. Sir Dyno accepts this rivalry, and its where many of his raps come from. It wasnt quite the impression he wanted to make. Lizard was charged with attempted murder, and sent back to jail. In 1968, in response to La Emes overwhelming power, a group of Norteos bonded together in the exercise yard of what was then named Soledad State Prison. He told Ramirez there should be no bloodshed. But then he added: If something comes at us, you cant help it. And when that rhyme ran out, as it usually does, he went where other rappers go to make up for the sudden loss of material: He started making shit up. Last year, a newly revised constitution for the gang was distributed through underground channels, allowing for change in the mesa's structure, said Santa Cruz County sheriff's Sgt. Hed proved he had the muscle to ascend within Nuestra Familia. Now, the legal definition rests simply on whether a person has a slight connection to the mob. Lizard wrote Big Smiley a wila, or small letter the size of a gum wrapper. As a captain, he answered only to a handful of higher-ranking capos and the three generals inside Pelican Bay. with his boss while in prison, and took it out of prison with him, after the idea was ratified by the NF leadership. He estimated the CD had netted about $80,000 and that hed sent only $5,000 to a bank account in Boise, Idaho, where a female accomplice transferred the money into a separate account for NF prisoners. Jared Lewis, a former Modesto gang investigator, says the impact of G.U.N. But compared to allegations lobbed by San Francisco attorney Marc Zilversmit, the drug and money violations turned out to be the least of the governments worries. What if you get away with it? Till Eternity which most people simply call the G.U.N. According to Lewis, gang members have been linked to an estimated three hundred homicides across Northern California. I could rap political, I could rap street, it doesnt matter, Sir Dyno says. I spoke to a classification officer at the San Joaquin County jail who confirmed that Rocha claimed to be norteo but didnt claim a particular set of a gang.. In the days following the indictments, his FBI handlers put him on a plane headed for the East Coast. A few years earlier, the two attorneys had nailed former general Pinky Hernandez for ordering a murder, and Cuete wanted to offer their coffins as a gift to Pinky. After the informant completed his undercover work, I discovered that the informant had engaged in unauthorized drug deals, Agent Ragan wrote. By 1965, Sureos outnumbered Norteos by roughly seven to one inside the prison system. Most importantly, he showed a willingness to draw sureo blood. Though vastly outnumbered, Nuestra Familia distinguished itself by organizing its troops along strict paramilitary lines. Then he waited. But paid parking could return, in some form, this year, as the city works to pu. They were operating a sophisticated shop, gang expert Lewis said. He told his interviewers Sir Dyno put out Gang Stories without permission and, for that, was very close to being placed on a hit list.. I didnt have a choice, he recalled. Not only does Rocha appear on the cover of the CD wearing the norteo colors (red), reads one motion, but he is seen giving gang signs for the norteos. The risks had Lizard thinking. You could see he was nervous, Holguin said. But within a few months, Nato got pinched for robbery, and with his long rap sheet, he got 39 years. If Nuestra Familia invested in meth labs, a network was already in place. If Lizard wanted to buy it, Silent would ask only $15,000 cash. And then I told him, You know who I am. He was sentenced to six months in the prisons infamous Secured Housing Unit, where more than a thousand inmates spend 23 hours a day triple-locked inside individual cells, with only a small food slot as a window. Roy Morales. finds relevant news, identifies important training information, Almost two decades later, Lizard still recalls the clarity of that moment. Over the next four years, Lizard and Cuete masterminded and penned more than three thousand letters, according to an FBI report. According to one source, Ribota took the CD to the San Joaquin County district attorneys office to see if it constituted an official threat to a police officer. Nineteen-year-old Armando Frias was shooting pool when he recognized the wanted man. Therefore John Ashcroft is a chicken.. This is a combined effort to enlighten the worthy, as the time is now that we must leave old attitudes to the past, and adopt new and more meaningful and fulfilling ideas. Lizard said he beat Ruiz to a pulp with his fists, bringing his victim close to death. His teen angst surfaced one day when he threatened to kill his vice principal. His most recent, Engrave These Words on My Stone, is probably his most cathartic, if not authentic. Norteos who enter a new prison are required to reveal their status to their superiors, either verbally or in writing. When the state-of-the-art super-max penitentiary opened in 1989, built exclusively for the states 2,800 most violent inmates, Governor George Deukmejian hailed it a model for the rest of the nation. Instead, it has become a model gang incubator. But he was undergoing a lot. Click here to read the Nuestra Familia constitution. Zilversmit represents Armando Suave Heredia, a gang member arrested for ordering a successful hit on Salinas heroin dealer Ray Sanchez. The handlers didnt want to blow his cover. Then in late April 2001, more than two years since hed last spoken to Robert Gratton, he was summoned to a meeting with his parole officer. I mean, he wasnt gonna tell me, and I wasnt gonna tell him what I was doing.. Sureos tended to be more-recent immigrants who often disparaged Norteos as second-generation Latinos who groveled for agricultural jobs and neglected their mother tongue, according to Joseph Hernandez, a criminal justice professor at Sacramento State University and expert in Latino gangs. Three days before Christmas, Lizard called Holguin. Gang affiliation in California is often a matter of geography, but for Daniel Hernandez it wasnt that simple. dozens of murders while imprisoned at Pelican Bay, including gang activity in Northern California about six years ago. Days later, Big Smiley sent Lizard his own wilas, as well as books on Chicano history. It is my hope the federal prison system is better equipped to derail the violence.. While members of the Norteos gang are considered to be affiliated with Nuestra Familia, being a member of Nuestra Familia itself does not signify association as a Norteo. Copyright 2023 Police1. Thats it. Cuete had gone power mad. Crazy Girl translated the letters and passed them along to gang members on the outside. I didnt realize lyrics could be taken so seriously, he now says, claiming that he rapped for shock value on G.U.N. He was more than just a studio rapper, he says. Prison gang members set to testify against Nuestra Familia leaders. If he went back to Pelican Bay, his elders would be upset to see him. Smiley replied that it was true, but not to worry no one was moving on it. Its as sensible as that East Coast-West Coast thing. The gang's new constitution says the five should still be respected as former leaders, but has stripped them of their power in California. Chalk it up as a loss, just let it go, and move on. After all, race-based prison gang violence dominates Californias prison system, according to a 2002 report from the California State Department of Justice. But government agents said that Brown Bob actually had pulled away from the gang. He recorded From the Barrio with Love, taking his name outside California and into pockets of Chicano markets in places such as Phoenix, Denver, and Albuquerque. If he was going to hold the case together, hed need to account for his own alleged crimes as a snitch. Im a Northerner, he says, arms wide. In a memo to his colleagues, Helton talks about spotting G.U.N. All those guys didnt want to see me up there. They didnt care about agendas like that.. I even convinced the government that Im this crazy guy.. The following day, Ray Sanchez walked into Caps Saloon, unaware that hed been the discussion of a hit. While Sanchez sipped beer, Frias met Martinez at his car. This may be called Tools or use an icon like the cog. Violence was averted in those cases, Gruel said. Or better yet, two prosecuting attorneys., Cervantes persisted. Lizard hadnt, so Nato schooled him on the long-standing war. According to Lewis, the gang grew from about a thousand members in the late 80s to more than two thousand just six years later. If you ever want to help yourself, you can. The eradication was criticized by some prison gang experts, citing that Eme members now filled a power vacuum, and that future Norteos, outnumbered and alone, would only serve as bait. That was enough to send Holguin back to Lizards hotel room to make an arrest. They had all their dirty laundry to air out and they were allowing those agendas to decide how they acted, what they wanted the gang to do, how they were conducting affairs within the gang. The words didnt sound right to Lizard. Outside for the first time in decades, he was fashioning a new life in suburban Campbell with his wife and two sons. All rights reserved. Lizard said he attacked Huero-T as he slept, pummeling him into a bloody mess until guards pulled him off. The CD had been funded in 1998 from Pelican Bay prison by the top Nuestra Familia general, Gerald "Cuete" Rubalcaba. Gratton had been deployed by his bosses to run the gangs Zapatista crew, which operated in the Modesto, Tracy, and Turlock areas. After several years of upheaval -- stemming largely from the massive federal prosecution called Operation Black Widow -- the top leadership of the Nuestra Familia is once again firmly established. Lizard recalled feeling nothing in the aftermath of the hit. Its not like her life used to be.. Now youre in the gang., Lizard still recalls what Nato told him on that day back in San Quentin: Primo, if the North and South go to war, I cant protect you just because youre my blood. His words are those of a man still prepared for war. A grand jury indictment was in the works. Lizard swung his weight around hard. In May of 2001, Lizard met with Martin Ramirez, a gang member from Salinas. At the time of Operation Black Widow, law enforcement officials had estimated that Nuestra Familia was responsible for at least 600 murders in the previous 30 years. But I knew more about Cuete and his family, and he did about mine. For seven months, he secretly recorded meetings with his gangs underbosses, allowing federal agents to listen in as his carnals planned drug deals, bought firearms, and talked openly about killing people, including two deputy district attorneys from Santa Clara County. only to sell records. No one who got whacked was an innocent man. 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