Two Rolling 60s Gang Members Sentenced to Lengthy Federal Prison Terms
Las Vegas, Nev. - Rolling 60s Crips gang members ARLANDERS GIBSON, aka J-Lou, age 33, of North Las Vegas, and MICHAEL COLEMAN, aka Scratch, age 22, of Las Vegas, have been sentenced to 198 months and 153 months in prison, respectively, announced Daniel G. Bogden, United States Attorney for the District of Nevada.
U.S. District Judge Larry R. Hicks handed down the sentences on Monday, February 6, 2006, against GIBSON and COLEMAN, who had both pleaded guilty in September. GIBSON pleaded guilty to Conspiracy to Engage in a Racketeer Influenced Corrupt Organization. His 198-month term of imprisonment will be followed by five years of supervised release. COLEMAN pleaded guilty to Violent Crime in Aid of Racketeering and Use of a Firearm During and in Relation to a Crime of Violence. COLEMAN's sentence included 33 months in prison for the Violent Crime in Aid of Racketeering charge and a 10-year consecutive period of imprisonment for the Use of a Firearm During a Crime of Violence charge that will be followed by a three-year term of supervised release.
ARLANDERS GIBSON admitted that he was a leader ("Original Gangster") in the Rolling 60s Crips gang in Las Vegas, and that he directed other members of the gang to carry out unlawful and other activities in furtherance of the gang's affairs, which included selling crack cocaine and using guns and violence to control gang territory in an area known as West Las Vegas. GIBSON also admitted that in order to gain status in the organization, gang members threatened witnesses with arson, physical attack, drive-by shootings, and murder. GIBSON admitted that on six occasions between June 14, 2002, and August 13, 2003, he possessed with the intent to distribute or distributed crack cocaine totaling 220.6 grams.
MICHAEL COLEMAN admitted that he had been a young member ("Young Gangster") of the Rolling 60s Crips since 2002. On March 15, 2003, outside Quick's Radiator Shop in North Las Vegas, COLEMAN attempted to kill Louis Myles by shooting at him with a firearm. Myles was hit four times in the back and once in the head, but he survived. COLEMAN admitted that he attempted to kill Myles because Myles had disrespected him, and that as a Rolling 60s gang member, he was expected to retaliate in order to maintain or increase his position within the gang.
The investigation and prosecution of the members of the Rolling 60s street gang and their involvement in violent crime and drug trafficking in Clark County, Nevada, is the largest of its kind in the area, and has required the resources, coordination and cooperation of numerous federal, state and local agencies. Since the investigation began, 44 members or associates of the Rolling 60s and others have been indicted in United States District Court in Las Vegas, and 37 defendants have been convicted thus far. Numerous others have been charged and convicted in the 8th Judicial District Court in Clark County and prosecuted by the Clark County District Attorney's Office.
The federal cases are being investigated by the FBI's Violent Crime Squad, the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department, the Henderson Police Department, and the North Las Vegas Police Department, and are being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kathleen Bliss and First Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven W. Myhre.
