Federal authorities say Tulsa gang members have distributed $10 million worth of cocaine from Mexican cartels and murdered at least one witness since 2011.
A federal indictment states more than 50 members and associates of the Hoover Crips have been charged with a total of about 240 criminal offenses. Authorities released the findings of the three-year, multi-agency investigation on Tuesday.
"As long as we have this kind of crime, this kind of gang activity and drug dealing in our community, we're going to continue to target it," Jordan said in a press conference Tuesday. "We're going to continue to have news conferences like this where we tell you some of the worst people in our community are off the streets."
Authorities say gang members purchased cocaine and marijuana from cartels from 2011 to 2014. They say members operated Tulsa drug dens where cocaine was cooked, packaged and sold. The Tulsa World reports among those named in the indictment is former University of Oklahoma and NFL star running back De'Mond Parker (named as "Demonn" in the indictment).
Parker, a Booker T. Washington High School graduate, was arrested in June 2013 on complaints of trafficking crack base and marijuana. He played running back at the University of Oklahoma from 1996 through 1998 and is the school’s seventh all-time leading rusher. He played two seasons with the NFL’s Green Bay Packers. According to an arrest report, Parker was found with marijuana during a search. Police also discovered a machete and 28 grams of crack cocaine inside his vehicle. He was released on bail, and state charges in that case are pending. After his release from jail, the indictment alleges that Parker sold crack cocaine on multiple days during July 2013 through the window of a house in the 500 block of East Tecumseh Street. The residence was among those listed as Hoover Crips drug houses.
A federal attorney says 23 of the 51 people indicted had been arrested by Tuesday afternoon. He says the 238-page report is the largest in the history of the Northern District of Oklahoma.
The charges are the result of a three-year U.S. Attorney’s Office, Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force investigation.
According to the allegations in the indictment, from April 2011 to August 2014 the defendants conspired to purchase cocaine and marijuana from Mexican drug cartels and sold drugs in the Tulsa area. During the conspiracy, money generated was used for dog fighting, gambling, travel, and vehicle purchases.
The indictment also alleges the defendants operated “crack houses” in the Tulsa area for cooking, packaging, and selling of cocaine. These houses were also used as locations for money drops.
Read The Full Indictment
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