Wednesday, June 21, 2006

Mickey Cobras Rounded Up For Dealing Fentanyl-Laced Heroin

From the Tribune:

Chicago police and federal drug agents descended on the Dearborn Homes housing project and a South Side house this morning, executing dozens of arrest warrants for street gang members believed to control much of the Fentanyl that has killed more than 60 heroin users in the Chicago area.

Authorities believe the Mickey Cobras gang has been at the center of the dangerous painkiller's appearance in Chicago's heroin supply this year, and they have been building a case for months against the gang's top leadership.

Just after 6 a.m., 12 officers and agents raided the South Side house of an alleged ranking member of the gang. At the same time, a huge team left a staging area at U.S. Cellular Field and poured into the sprawling Dearborn Homes complex in the 2700 to 3000 blocks of South Dearborn Street.[map here]

The key reason as to why the police are so optimistic about this operation comes late in the article:
Investigators have tried to determine how the drug was being delivered to the city, and who controlled dealing it on the street. The information kept leading to the Mickey Cobras, partly because so much of the problem seemed to be centered near Dearborn Homes.

The DEA and U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald (yes, that Patrick Fitzgerald) will be holding a press conference at 2:00 pm today to discuss the charges against those arrested today.

Here's some information on the Mickey Cobras. This sentence sort of jumped out at me:
In their third generation, they now like the BPSN [Black P. Stone Nation], have a strong Islamic influence. The Mickey Cobras now have their own unique written constitution and by-laws. These documents show a strong Islamic influence, just like those of the modern-day BPSN.


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