'Mass Casualties or Death': Bulletin Warned of Texas White Supremacist Gang
Retaliation
By RUSSELL GOLDMAN (@GoldmanRussell) and JACK DATE
April 3, 2013
Months before the slaying of two Kaufman County prosecutors, Texas
authorities sent out a bulletin warning that a gang of white supremacists
might seek retaliation involving "mass casualties or death," sources said.
The December 2012 bulletin, obtained by ABC News, warned that "high ranking
members of the Aryan Brotherhood of Texas are involved in issuing orders to
inflict 'mass casualties or death' to law enforcement officials involved in
the recent case."
The bulletin said "the plan is designed to be carried out when law
enforcement officers are at large gatherings." It warned that the Aryan
Brotherhood of Texas was "proactively working toward developing personal
information about officers involved in the recent arrest of Aryan
Brotherhood of Texas members," and was carrying out surveillance of the
officers.
Law enforcement sources have said the Aryan Brotherhood of Texas, a violent
prison gang, is a top focus of an investigation into the deaths of the
prosecutors, Mark Hasse and Mike McLelland.
RELATED: Slain Texas Prosecutor and Wife Found Dead in Home by Neighbors
The case against the gang is expected to go forward this summer or fall.
Thirty-four Aryan Brotherhood of Texas members were indicted in Houston in
November for crimes including racketeering, drug distribution and
kidnapping. Ten members potentially faced the death penalty as prosecutors
accused them of ruthless violence, including ordering hits on rival gang
members.
A review of the case showed that two slain Kaufman County prosecutors
assisted in the investigation, along with more than a dozen agencies.
Police have not linked the Aryan Brotherhood of Texas with the killings, and
are poring through hundreds of cases on which Hasse worked, running down
leads that point to Mexican drug cartels, local drug traffickers and other
violent individuals.
RELATED: Prosecutors Are 'Under Attack,' Texas District Attorney Says
Today, the Kaufman County Sheriff's Office announced the arrest of Nick
Morale for making terroristic threats against county officials.
Morale was being held on $1 million bond but, according to police, there is
"nothing to link Mr. Morale to the murders" of Hasse and McLelland.
Police said they were also investigating other threats made to county
officials, but would not provide details.
Safety Concerns
Judicial officials in Kaufman County have been given special protections.
Judge Bruce Wood said this week that he was given a bodyguard, and sheriff's
deputies have been parked outside the home of Brandi Fernandez, the county's
new acting district attorney, since her appointment on Monday.
An assistant U.S. attorney prosecuting the Aryan Brotherhood of Texas has
withdrawn from the case citing "security purposes," just days after
McLelland was killed in his home.
Jay Hileman filed a notice to withdraw from the case with the court, and on
Tuesday sent an email about his decision to the defense lawyers representing
34 indicted members of the Aryan Brotherhood of Texas.
"He sent an email to all counsel that he was withdrawing for security
purposes," defense lawyer Richard Ely said. "I'm not going to speculate why,
but I can understand why someone with a family might withdraw, yes."
Another source familiar with the message told ABC News it was "abundantly
clear" Hileman was stepping down because of security concerns.
==========================================
(F)AIR USE NOTICE: All original content and/or articles and graphics in this
message are copyrighted, unless specifically noted otherwise. All rights to
these copyrighted items are reserved. Articles and graphics have been placed
within for educational and discussion purposes only, in compliance with
"Fair Use" criteria established in Section 107 of the Copyright Act of 1976.
The principle of "Fair Use" was established as law by Section 107 of The
Copyright Act of 1976. "Fair Use" legally eliminates the need to obtain
permission or pay royalties for the use of previously copyrighted materials
if the purposes of display include "criticism, comment, news reporting,
teaching, scholarship, and research." Section 107 establishes four criteria
for determining whether the use of a work in any particular case qualifies
as a "fair use". A work used does not necessarily have to satisfy all four
criteria to qualify as an instance of "fair use". Rather, "fair use" is
determined by the overall extent to which the cited work does or does not
substantially satisfy the criteria in their totality. If you wish to use
copyrighted material for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use,' you
must obtain permission from the copyright owner. For more information go to:
http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml
THIS DOCUMENT MAY CONTAIN COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL. COPYING AND DISSEMINATION IS
PROHIBITED WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE COPYRIGHT OWNERS.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment