Associated Press
LAS VEGAS — Five men accused of being members of a white supremacist gang were found guilty Monday on federal racketeering, drug and firearms charges stemming from what prosecutors called a reign of intimidation and violence in Nevada prisons.
A jury convicted the men on host of charges ranging from racketeering conspiracy to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and firearms charges, authorities said.
A sixth defendant was found not guilty on all charges.
Prosecutors allege the Aryan Warriors gang was a criminal enterprise that assaulted inmates, dealt drugs, bribed prison guards and ran gambling operations in several state prisons and detention centers.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for Nevada, aided by the Nevada division of the FBI, initially charged 14 men in an indictment unsealed nearly two years ago. Seven have pleaded guilty. Another is awaiting trial.
Along with the operations in prison, authorities accused the men of operating a “street program” in Las Vegas, Reno and Pahrump. The men used members and associates to steal identities and credit cards, and to smuggle drugs in prisons, prosecutors said.
Defense attorneys argued the men weren’t part of a coordinated conspiracy, but merely associated with other white inmates because Nevada prisons are effectively segregated by race.
Attorney Chris Rasmussen, who represented 31-year-old Young, described the jury’s verdict as “long and confusing,” noting some of the men were accused of the conspiracy while being acquitted on other charges.
Young plans to appeal the guilty verdict, Rasmussen said.