Imperial Insane Vice Lords Gang Members Busted

 Posted on October 15, 2013 in Chicago News

There’s been no shortage of stories involving murder and violence coming out of Chicago in recent years, but rarely do the people at the top, oftentimes more responsible for the violence than anyone else, get caught. In mid-October, however, according to the Chicago Sun-Times, police apprehended 33 people who are now facing drug conspiracy charges, including the head of the Imperial Insane Vice Lords Nathaniel Hoskins. Hoskins and his family, reports the Sun-Times, actually lived in Las Vegas at the time of his arrest, “but the reputed gang leader micromanaged drug spots in his hometown of Chicago and even ordered a murder in 2011, prosecutors said.” According to the Sun-Times, the Imperial Insane Vice Lords have a stronghold on the city’s West Side, “but also operated a drug spot in Wicker Park near North and Damen.”

There were nine other defendants in court alongside Hoskins that have been formally charged with racketeering. These were in addition to 14 others “ranging in age from 21 to 52 also… charged federally with conspiracy to distribute heroin.” An additional nine alleged gang members were charged in a Cook County criminal court. Police told the Sun-Times that Hoskins kept a close eye on the 250 gang members he “employed” in Chicago, even though he was 1,700 miles away. He has been accused of “dabbling in illegal pharmaceutical sales in Nevada too,” police told the Sun-Times.

According to a special report from ABC News Chicago, there are currently an estimated 100,000 gang members in Chicago vs. 12,000 members of the Chicago Police Department. “Gang members were responsible for 61 percent of all homicides in 2011, up from 58.7 percent in 2010,” reports ABC. There’s been a 25 percent increase in gang activity from 2009 to 2012 in Chicago—which is a still a surprisingly 15 percent less than the increase in gang activity nationally from 2009 to 2011.

If you or someone you know has been accused of participating in a gang or illegal activities involving gangs, don’t go through it alone. Contact an experienced Chicago criminal defense attorney today.