Alleged street gang leader pleads guilty to shooting | Philadelphia Inquirer | 04/05/2010

Alleged street gang leader pleads guilty to shooting | Philadelphia Inquirer | 04/05/2010: "Gray's Ferry street gang notorious for gunfights with rivals pleaded guilty Monday to a 2007 shooting in a deal that will send him to prison for four to 15 years.
Tyrik Upchurch, 22, pleaded guilty to aggravated assault and possession of an instrument of crime on what was to have been the first day of his trial in Philadelphia Common Pleas Court.
Judge Sandy L.V. Byrd accepted the plea deal and immediately sentenced Upchurch in the Oct. 14, 2007 shooting of Jujuan Hinton, 27.
Assistant District Attorney Thomas Lipscomb told the judge that Hinton was in a hack cab in the 2800 block of Wharton Street when Upchurch walked up and fired six shots, hitting Hinton five times.
Hinton survived and, in a hospital interview, identified Upchurch as his shooter, Lipscomb said. However, Hinton later recanted and said he did not know why he was targeted.
Upchurch's new sentence will run concurrently with a five- to 10-year term begun in 2008 after he was convicted in another gang-related shootout on March 25, 2007. In that incident, two girls ages 9 and 12 were wounded in cross fire in the 1400 block of South Etting Street.
The jury acquitted Upchurch of involvement in the shooting but convicted him of witness intimidation, Lipscomb said."

Wanted Gunman Ignored Woman's Desperate Pleas - Gun Crime Gossip

Wanted Gunman Ignored Woman's Desperate Pleas - Gun Crime Gossip: "Bay Area manhunt was underway Friday for the alleged gunman who ignored pleas from the victim's stepdaughter to stop the murderous rampage and continued firing into the body of the wounded man, a neighbor told KTVU. Jesus, a neighbor, described for KTVU what his sons told him they saw during the Thursday afternoon shooting at apartment complex in the 4800 block of Clayton Road. 'They (his children) were playing outside,' Herrera told KTVU"

Mexico drug gangs turn weapons on army - latimes.com

Mexico drug gangs turn weapons on army - latimes.com: "Drug traffickers fighting to control northern Mexico have turned their guns and grenades on the Mexican army, authorities said, in an apparent escalation of warfare that played out across multiple cities in two border states.

In coordinated attacks, gunmen in armored cars and equipped with grenade launchers fought army troops this week and attempted to trap some of them in two military bases by cutting off access and blocking highways, a new tactic by Mexico's organized criminals.

In taking such aggressive action, the traffickers have shown that they are not reluctant to challenge the army head-on and that they possess good intelligence on where the army is, how it moves and when it operates.

At least 18 alleged attackers were killed and one soldier wounded in the fighting that erupted Tuesday in half a dozen towns and cities in the states of Tamaulipas and Nuevo Leon, the army said, topping off one of the deadliest months yet in a drug war that has raged for nearly 3 1/2 years"

LA Restaurant Shooting: Armenian Gangs Tied to Hot Spot Cafe Dead | NowPublic News Coverage

LA Restaurant Shooting: Armenian Gangs Tied to Hot Spot Cafe Dead | NowPublic News Coverage: "Los Angeles police have confirmed the identities of four people who were killed at a San Fernando Valley restaurant. Police say that Hayk Yegnanyan, 25, Sarkis Karadjian, 26, Harut Baburyan, 28, and Vardan Tofalyan, 31 were shot in what they believe is a targeted killing. Two other men were wounded in the LA restaurant shooting. The suspect is still at large."

Mass Arrest Follows New York City Gang Melee | AHN

Mass Arrest Follows New York City Gang Melee | AHN: "shooting was believed to have been triggered by gangs who had been into a car show at the Javits Center.
Witnesses said the gunfire at Herald Square caused a stampede as people tried to flee to safety.
The melee was a yearly occurrence every Easter night during the car show, according to police.
The NYPD deployed 100 police offers in the area but they were outnumbered by the gangbangers."

Man, 22, pleads guilty in Grays Ferry shooting | Philadelphia Inquirer | 04/06/2010

Man, 22, pleads guilty in Grays Ferry shooting | Philadelphia Inquirer | 04/06/2010: "Tyrik Upchurch, 22, pleaded guilty to aggravated assault and possession of an instrument of crime on what was to have been the first day of his trial in Philadelphia Common Pleas Court.
Judge Sandy L.V. Byrd accepted the plea deal and immediately sentenced Upchurch in the Oct. 14, 2007, shooting of Jujuan Hinton, 27.
Assistant District Attorney Thomas Lipscomb told the judge that Hinton was in a hack cab in the 2800 block of Wharton Street when Upchurch walked up and fired six shots, hitting Hinton five times.
Hinton survived and, in a hospital interview, identified Upchurch as his shooter, Lipscomb said. However, Hinton later recanted and said he did not know why he was targeted.
Upchurch's new sentence will run concurrently with a five- to 10-year term begun in 2008 after he was convicted in another gang-related shoot-out on March 25, 2007. In that incident, two girls ages 9 and 12 were wounded in cross fire in the 1400 block of South Etting Street.
The jury acquitted Upchurch of involvement in the shooting but convicted him of witness intimidation, Lipscomb said.
Defense attorney S. Philip Steinberg told the judge Upchurch was sorry for the Hinton shooting and was taking prison classes to improve himself.
Upchurch thanked the prosecutor for 'letting me move on.'
Police said Upchurch led the 27th and Dickinson Street gang that often clashed with rival drug and street gangs in the area."

Macon police make arrests in gang-related shootings - Breaking News - Macon.com

Macon police make arrests in gang-related shootings - Breaking News - Macon.com: "police have made five arrests and are looking for three people in connection with five gang-related, drive-by shootings.
Sgt. Timothy Moore said two groups are responsible for the shootings, which stemmed from a more than 2-year-old argument. Police aren’t sure what sparked the conflict."

4 Killed in the Valley – May Be Armenian Gang Related | DailyPolitical.com

4 Killed in the Valley – May Be Armenian Gang Related | DailyPolitical.com: "gunman opened fire on Hot Spot Cafe, 11651 Riverside Drive. The gunman killed 3 people at the location and the fourth victim died on his way to the hospital. Two others were wounded.
Police told reporters that the killings might be Armenian Gang related although the victims were not in gangs themselves, according to police. Valley Village is a safe neighborhood but that didn’t stop the shooter as he opened fire in daylight and took 4 lives for no reason.
The suspect has not been caught and the police are urging anyone with any information t to contact the police. The victims were later identified by Los Angeles police as Harut Baburyan, 28, Sarkis Karadjian, 26, Vardan Tofalyan, 31, and Hayk Yegnanyan, 25.
The community is urged to work with the local police department and help the police bring the shooter to justice. The police also assured residents nearby that they don’t have a “crazed gunman” running around in the valley shooting random people. The police are doing everything they can to find the suspect in this case and put an end to this quadruple murder."

Judge sentences Davenport man for gun crime

Judge sentences Davenport man for gun crime: "Alex Vanarsdale, 22, also was sentenced Wednesday to concurrent, five-year sentences for second-degree criminal mischief and criminal gang participation.
He pleaded guilty to charges stemming from an incident in September. He was arrested Sept. 11 along with Shad Aaron Murphy, 21, and Shawn Wayne Murphy, 23, who were sentenced last month to five years each for intimidation with a dangerous weapon"

Ivan Garcia, 26, was convicted in February of street terrorism and attempted murder for shooting David Puga

Ivan Garcia, 26, was convicted in February of street terrorism and attempted murder for shooting David Puga after the homeowner saw him tagging a block wall on a cul-de-sac.Garcia was tied to the brutal April 2008 attack by his DNA, which was left on a discarded spray paint can near the crime scene, prosecutors said. As a result of the shooting, part of Pugh’s brain had to be removed and he was left with memory loss and a lack of motor and verbal functions, they said.Before the sentence was handed down, Puga's wife, Dorothy, told of the impact on her husband.“All I have to say to you, Ivan, is that you will suffer in jail like my husband has to suffer for the rest of his life,” she said in court, according to prosecutors. “You have not only hurt our family, but by the way I see your mother crying in the courtroom, you have hurt your family as well.”Puga and his wife were returning home from the grocery store the night of the attack. Puga went out to move a car from the street to the driveway and spotted Garcia and another man tagging a block wall by crossing out a rival gang's graffiti.Garcia then pulled out a gun and shot the 45-year-old Puga three times in the neck, arm and foot and continued to fire as Puga tried to escape by crawling back into his home, prosecutors said.After hearing the gunshots and finding her wounded husband, Puga’s wife called 911. Witnesses saw Garcia and another gang member toss the spray-paint can into a Dumpster near a convenience store.In August 2008, forensic experts matched it to Garcia’s DNA, which was in the state criminal database because he had been convicted that year of being an accessory after the fact in a gang murder.One of Puga's daughters, who was 16 at the time of the attack and whose name was not released, recalled the attack in court before Garcia was sentenced.“I will never forget the way my dad was looking at me as he lay on the driveway on his back with blood pouring out his neck,” she stated, according to prosecutors. “I was screaming out loud, 'Dad, please don’t die!'”