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Gang Activity and Organized Crime in Phoenix Explained
|Last Updated on: 5th October 2023, 07:53 am
Gang Activity and Organized Crime in Phoenix Explained
What’s up folks! I wanted to write this article to help explain what’s going on with gangs and organized crime here in Phoenix. I know it can be kinda scary to hear about this stuff on the news, but hopefully breaking it down will help folks understand the situation better.
First off, we gotta talk about why gangs exist in the first place. A lot of it comes down to young people feeling like they don’t have power or opportunities in their life. They get together with other kids who are struggling and form a gang to get money, status, identity – all the things they feel like they’re missing out on. It doesn’t make it right, but understanding where it comes from can help us address the root causes.
The two biggest national gangs we see in Phoenix are the Crips and the Bloods. They started in LA back in the 60s and 70s. Since then, their membership has spread all over the country. Both gangs make money through drug sales, robberies, fraud – basically any illegal activity that generates cash.
In addition to the major gangs, Phoenix has a ton of local crews and cliques. These are smaller gangs that control specific neighborhoods or blocks in the city. They beef with each other over territory, drug sales, personal disputes, you name it. Basically your typical gang drama, just on a smaller scale.
All this gang activity inevitably leads to violence. In 2021, the Phoenix Police Department reported 644 gang-related violent crimes, including:
- 10 homicides
- 40 sex crimes
- 107 robberies
- 487 aggravated assaults
As you can see, the violence disproportionately impacts working class neighborhoods and communities of color. It’s a vicious cycle where kids get drawn into gangs due to lack of opportunity, then end up doing time or getting killed in gang disputes. We gotta find ways to break that cycle.
How Do Gangs Relate to Organized Crime in Phoenix?
Gangs and organized crime groups often work together to maximize profits from illegal activities. The gang members handle street-level drug dealing and petty crimes in the neighborhoods they control. The organized crime outfits like mafias and cartels manage the high-level distribution of drugs and weapons across the city, state, and beyond.
For example, a local Crip set might control drug sales on a few blocks in South Phoenix. They get their product from the Sinaloa Cartel, which imports and distributes drugs all over Arizona. The Crips sell the drugs on the street and kick back a cut of the money to the cartel. It’s a symbiotic relationship.
This kind of collaboration also happens between rival gangs. The Bloods and Crips are infamous rivals, but that doesn’t stop them from working deals when it benefits both sides. It’s a tricky situation for law enforcement to try and untangle.
How Law Enforcement Combats Gangs and Organized Crime
Phoenix police use a bunch of different tactics to combat gang and organized crime activity:
- Undercover drug busts and stings
- Increased patrols and police presence in high-crime areas
- Monitoring gang member’s social media activity
- Working with schools and community groups on prevention
- Multi-agency task forces and collaboration with federal agencies like FBI, DEA, ATF
One of the biggest gang busts in Phoenix history happened in 2019. The Arizona Attorney General’s office led a huge investigation called Operation Snake Eyes that took down the Mexican Mafia gang. They arrested 34 members who were running a major drug trafficking and money laundering operation connected to the Sinaloa Cartel. This is the kind of high-level organized crime that requires coordination between local cops, state investigators, and federal agencies.
For the gang activity happening on the streets, Phoenix PD relies heavily on its Gang Enforcement Bureau. These cops specialize in gathering street intel about the different gangs and sets operating in the city. They use informants, surveillance, and gang databases to identify members and monitor gang activity. The Gang Enforcement Bureau works closely with precinct officers to identify emerging gang-related crime patterns.
However, many community activists argue that heavy-handed suppression tactics can often backfire. They point to LA and Chicago, where disbanding specialized gang units and investing more in community programs led to decreased crime. There are good arguments on both sides, and it’s an ongoing debate in Phoenix.
What Are Some Solutions to Gang Violence?
Suppression and enforcement are part of the equation, but many experts say we can’t just arrest our way out of this problem. Some other strategies that could help reduce gang activity and violence include:
- Investing in education and after-school programs – Keeping kids engaged and supported can prevent them from joining gangs in the first place.
- Increasing economic opportunities – Poverty and lack of legal ways to make money feed the gang pipeline.
- Prioritizing rehabilitation over punishment – The US has very high recidivism rates. Better prison re-entry programs could help.
- Community intervention programs – Using trusted community members to mediate conflicts and intervene with at-risk youth shows promise.
There’s no single magic bullet, but a combination of prevention, intervention, and suppression efforts could help make real progress. It ultimately comes down to investing more in the health, education, and economic well-being of marginalized communities.
The gang situation in Phoenix is complex, with deep social roots and lots of moving pieces. My goal here was just to provide a basic overview of what’s going on and get folks thinking about solutions. Let me know in the comments if you have any other thoughts or insights into this issue!
References
[1] Gang Prevention: An Overview of Research and Programs
[3] 2011 National Gang Threat Assessment
[4] Gang & Immigration Intelligence Team Enforcement Mission (GIITEM)