A Norteno gang member named David "Chavo" Chavez is facing murder and assault charges after being arrested in connection with the September 19th homicide of Jose "Chema" Rodriguez, that took place in Toppenish, Washington. The Yakima Herald reports the attack was a retaliation for a vehicle vandalism that happened a few days prior to one of Chavez's friends. This was Toppenish's 1st homicide of the year 2012.
This past week I've taken several gang graffiti photos in Salem, Oregon, and in Tacoma, Federal Way, and Kent, Washington. You can view all my new photos by clicking HERE. Also below is a couple pictures of gang graffiti I've never seen before. Can you help me identify what gangs these are? ESM X3 in Tacoma. WSL X7 in Kent. NST X4 in Tacoma. 
Hey everyone, a lot of different things going on this past week. The City of Yakima reported their 2nd gang homicide of the year. A "South Side Familia 13" gang member was shot and killed over the weekend. Also I've been following a gang story out of Eugene, Oregon. I guess two rival gangs "West Side Piru" and "S/S Playboys 13" were involved in some potential gun play. I'm really hoping I can get out and take graffiti photos this Saturday. My target area will be Tacoma-Lakewood, and Federal Way. Then in about 2 weeks I'm going to try my best to make it out to Grant County. That all depends on weather conditions and my car. Anyways thanks for following and check back later! -Brad Early this week the King County sheriff told the city, county and media there is a "GANG WAR" playing out on the streets of South King County. They blame 6 rival Latino gangs for the latest gunplay at both the Kent Lowrider show, and then at a apartment on Kent's East Hill. Because of this I've now had the media, friends, and gang members asking what gangs are taking part in this gang war? I had to sit back and think about this, because I wasn't aware of any gang war taking place in South King County. Yeah shootings happen every so often, but doesn't wars consist of casualties? As far as I know nobody has been killed due to this gang war, the streets aren't being riddled with gunfire every night, buildings aren't being covered in gang graffiti everywhere you look. You want to see a gang war? Take a quick 3 hour drive east to Yakima, Sunnyside or Pasco. You will see first hand a gang war taking place over there. But to get back to answering your guys' question as to who is involved in this gang war, I don't know, but what I can do is tell you who I THINK the police are talking about. There aren't that many Latino gangs in South King County, so I have a pretty good idea who they are talking about, since they won't flat out tell us who is putting "innocent people" at risk as they say. These are my GUESSES * Little Valley Lokotes 13 (LVL)- originated in Yakima County, now they have members all over the 206 & 253 area code. Very violent, organized and shouldn't be doubted. * Vatos Locos 13 (VL)- one of the original Mexican gangs in the Seattle area, they have spread all over the Puget Sound from Bellevue to Kent to Tacoma and everywhere in between. * S/S Playboy Surenos 13 (PBS)- been around for years, originated in Los Angeles, and still have connections to the PBS cliques down there. I find these guys mostly in the Kent/Auburn area. * Rancho San Pedro 13 (RSP)- originated in San Pedro, CA, have been operating in Auburn's Southeast neighborhood for several years now. Also known to have members in Kent, and I've been finding their graffiti in Seattle now. * El Monte Flores 13 (EMF)- originated in El Monte, CA, have been operating in Burien for some time now, found their graffiti in Des Moines recently. EMF is part of the Sureño alliance and fiercely loyal to the infamous Mexican Mafia prison gang. They have a long history of gang assaults including many against law enforcement. * Other gangs worth noting is "King Underground Surenos 13", and "South Side Clicka 13". I don't have much info on either of these gangs, but I've heard their name thrown around more than once. Both operate in the Federal Way and Kent areas. I just posted yet another name to the "Gang-Related deaths" section, 3rd one this week. There was a fatal shooting in Soap Lake, Washington this morning. The victim is 18-year old Luis "Yapperz" Martinez. Although the police are playing dumb, and aren't saying this is a gang-related shooting, I'm telling you it is. I've been told the victim is from Little Valley Lokotes 13, and the two suspects arrested are twin brothers from the rival West Side 18th Street Gang. That's all for now. -Brad-  Today I posted the Yakima gang page! Check out the website for more updates in the future. Also I'm following up on a shooting in Wapato, it seems like it was done in retaliation to the homicide in Yakima on Friday. Also down in Medford, Oregon they had a large gang brawl yesterday, one of the guys injured is the brother to a Norteno member that was murdered in June. It's gonna be a busy summer! -Brad- I'm following up on several things this Sunday evening. There has been 3 potential gang-related homicides in the past week. I have came across little info on them. Joaquin Serrano, 23 was shot and killed near Moses Lake on April 17th. Shiloh Hampton, 14 was shot and killed in Portland on April 20th. And then this past Friday, Adan Beltran, 25 was shot and killed in Quincy on April 22nd. Someone said South Side Locos were arrested for Beltran's death. Also I just was in Yakima this weekend, and on Saturday night, two people were shot in La Raza gang territory. I heard one was shot in the head, the other was shot in the back several times. No updates on their condition as of now. One last thing, be sure to check the Flickr page for my latest graffiti photos. I found several "Doble Gang" tags this weekend. -Brad- http://www.flickr.com/photos/northwestgangs/ | You can email me at:
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