BEAUMONT (KYTX) – Twelve
Southeast Texas residents have been indicted and arrested in connection with a
"white's only" racketeering enterprise that engaged in methamphetamine
distribution and murder in the Eastern District of Texas, announced U.S.
Attorney John M. Bales today.
The four-count superseding
indictment was returned by a federal grand jury on Mar. 7, 2013. Seven of
the charged defendants were already in custody and the remaining five were
arrested on Mar. 8, 2013. The indictment, which was unsealed today in the
Eastern District of Texas, names Kenny Don Stanley, 25, of Vidor, Texas; Tanner
Lynn Bourque, a/k/a "Two Shoes," a/k/a "Hitman," 33, of Port Arthur, Texas;
Kristopher Leigh Guidry, a/k/a "Hollywood," 28, of Vidor; Vicki
Stark-Fitts, 49, of Hull, Texas; Craig Pipps, a/k/a "Lone Wolf," 40, of Vidor;
Erica Nicole Parrott, 27, of Vidor; Ricky Allen Nichols, 54, of Vidor; Michael
Taylor Word, 45, of Silsbee, Texas; Juanette Marie Cunningham, a/k/a "Netty,"
46, of Vidor; Mikell Allen Cunningham, a/k/a "Mikey," 28, of Vidor; Cassi Diane
Hetzel, 37, of Silsbee; and Mack Langston Warner, 33, of Silsbee. The
indictment alleges that six of the defendants, Stanley, Bourque, Guidry,
Stark-Fitts, Pipps, and Mikell Cunningham, participated in the operation and
management of the SWS gang. The defendants are scheduled to make initial
appearances before U.S. Magistrate Judge Zack Hawthorn today.
According
to the indictment, SWS is a
race-based organization operating inside and outside of jails and prisons,
primarily in Texas. SWS was founded during the 1990s by inmates within the
Texas Department of Criminal Justice. SWS, which was founded as the
"Stupid Woods," is also known as "Solid Wood Soldiers" and "Separate White
State." SWS protects its
power, territory, and profits through intimidation and violence, including
assaults, robbery, and murder. SWS has a chain of command of president,
vice-president, council, major, captain, lieutenant, sergeant, and
soldier. SWS members, prospects, and associates refer to the gang as the
"wolf pack," "pack," or "family." The indictment states that SWS has a written constitution and bylaws that
outline the duties, responsibilities, and requirements associated with
membership. Prospective
members, called "prospects," must be "white" and sponsored by another SWS
member. Prospects must serve a probationary period during which their
conduct is observed by SWS members. During this period, prospects study
and learn the SWS constitution and by-laws and may be required to "work" for the
enterprise. "Work" means illegal activity. Prospects are considered
part of the SWS family and are therefore subject to the rules and orders of the
enterprise, including violent beatings known as
"disciplines." SWS
leaders determine if and when a prospect is eligible for initiation into
membership. SWS initiation requires a "blood in, blood out"
commitment. That is, prospects are subject to a violent beating in order
to become a "member." Members or prospects that leave SWS are likewise
subject to a violent beating.
According
to the indictment, SWS
members, prospects, and associates are required to further SWS goals through
criminal activity. Members and prospects are therefore required to commit
that they will follow without question any order of SWS leadership. In
particular, members and prospects are required, when ordered, to perform violent
acts without hesitation. Maintaining power and avoiding loss of stature
motivates SWS members, prospects, and associates to commit violent acts against
individuals and groups believed to be disrespectful or detrimental to
SWS.
The
indictment charges four of the defendants, Stanley, Bourque, Guidry, and
Stark-Fitts with murder in aid of racketeering. According to the
indictment, on Mar. 14, 2011,
the four used a firearm to murder James Lee Sedtal, a/k/a "Lil Bit," in Liberty
County, Texas. The indictment alleges that the four murdered Sedtal on
behalf of SWS, after Sedtal assaulted Word, an Aryan Brotherhood of Texas (ABT)
associate. The
indictment states that ABT was
poised to retaliate against SWS, and Bourque, Guidry, Stanley,
and Stark-Fitts
sought to maintain and increase their position within SWS by murdering
Sedtal. If convicted of murder as charged, the defendants each face either
life imprisonment or the death penalty.
The indictment charges all of the defendants
with conspiring to distribute
methamphetamine between Sep. 2010 and Mar. 2011. If convicted of the
conspiracy charge, the defendants each face from
10 years to life in federal prison.
This case is being prosecuted as part of the Project Safe
Neighborhoods Time Machine Initiative. Time Machine is aimed at reducing gun and
gang violence, deterring illegal possession of guns, ammunition and body
armor, and improving the safety of residents in the
Eastern District of Texas. Participants in the initiative include community
members and organizations as well as federal, state and local law enforcement
agencies.
The case
is being investigated by the ATF, U.S. Marshals Service, U.S. Secret Service,
DEA, FBI, U.S. Bureau of Prisons, Texas Rangers, Department of Public Safety
CID, Texas Department of Criminal Justice OIG, Orange County Sheriff's Office,
Hardin County Sheriff's Office, Jasper County Sheriff's Office, Tyler County
Sheriff's Office, Jefferson County Sheriff's Office, the Beaumont Police
Department, and the Silsbee Police Department and is being prosecuted by
Assistant U.S. Attorney John B. Ross.
A grand jury indictment is not
evidence of guilt and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty
beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
