Gangster Disciples’ main symbol is the six-pointed star which looks very much like the Star of David. The Star of David is often said to be a tribute to their founder David Barksdale, the star’s six points stand for love, life, loyalty, understanding, knowledge, and wisdom. Federal agents have arrested multiple members and associates of the national gang The Gangster Disciples on RICO charges stemming from an indictment returned by a federal grand jury on April 27, 2016. Agents also arrested Gangster Disciples members on a separate indictment handed down in Memphis, Tennessee. The Gangster Disciples are a criminal gang which was formed on the South-side of Chicago in the late 1960s, by Larry Hoover, leader of the High Life Supreme Gangsters, and David Barksdale, leader of the Black Disciples. The two groups united to form the Black Gangster Disciple Nation (BGDN). Gangster Era - Miscellaneous - Organizations - Organized Crime - Political Figures Events - Popular Culture - Public Corruption - Supreme Court - Unexplained Phenomenon - World War II - Violent Crime. Check Status of Your FOI/PA Request. Explanation of FOI/PA Exemptions.
Forty-eight alleged members of the violent Gangster Disciples Gang – including the top leaders in Tennessee and Georgia – have been charged in two indictments and accused of conspiring to participate in a racketeering enterprise that included multiple murders, attempted murder and drug crimes.
Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney John A. Horn of the Northern District of Georgia, U.S. Attorney Edward L. Stanton III of the Western District of Tennessee, Special Agent in Charge J. Britt Johnson of the FBI’s Atlanta Division and Special Agent in Charge A. Todd McCall of the FBI’s Memphis Division made the announcement.
Gangster Disciples Meridian Mississippi
A 12-count indictment was returned by a grand jury on April 27, and unsealed today in the U.S. District Court of the Northern District of Georgia. Thirty individuals were taken into custody today and two remain at large. A 16-count indictment was returned by a grand jury on April 22, and unsealed today in the U.S. District Court of the Western District of Tennessee. Fifteen individuals were taken into custody today and one remains at large.
“It is the very of core of law enforcement’s mission to ensure that everyone feels safe in their homes and neighborhoods, and it is a hard reality that many people across our country simply do not enjoy this basic sense of security because of gangs like the Gangster Disciples,” said Assistant Attorney General Caldwell. “That is why it is so significant that today’s indictments charge top leaders within the Gangster Disciples. There are a lot of people out there willing to join gangs, and eager to get easy money from criminal activity. But there are far fewer people with the wherewithal to lead organizations like the Gangster Disciples. These are the people who keep gangs like the Gangster Disciples alive, year in and year out, generation after generation. Cases like these make a difference, and I want to thank all the law enforcement and U.S. Attorney Office and Organized Crime and Gang Section prosecutors who worked so hard to build this case.”
“Atlanta has historically been resistant to the incursion of these national gangs, but unfortunately today’s indictment shows how this landscape has changed in just the last few years, as the Gangster Disciples are only one of several gangs that now boast a strong foothold,” said U.S. Attorney John Horn. “These charges show how a national gang like Gangster Disciples can wreak havoc here and in communities across the country, with crimes that run the gamut from murder to drug trafficking to credit card fraud. Within Georgia, the leadership of the Gangster Disciples resided mostly in metro Atlanta, yet the reach of the crimes committed extended into far south and west Georgia. We hope this indictment warns the leaders of these gangs that Atlanta is not a good place to do business.”
“As the indictment alleges, the Gangster Disciples flooded communities throughout the southeast and beyond with large amounts of drugs, and ruthlessly used fear, intimidation, and even murder to promote and protect their nationwide criminal enterprise,” said U.S. Attorney Stanton. “We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to eliminate the terror gang members inflict upon our communities, and will exhaust every available resource, including the federal RICO statute, to bring them to justice. Dismantling violent gangs at the highest levels remains a priority for the U.S. Attorney's Office.”
“Today's Gangster Disciple arrests across nine states merely marks the first wave of the FBI’s strategic campaign to dismantle this violent criminal organization,” said Special Agent in Charge Johnson. “The Gangster Disciples are a highly organized and ruthless gang that recognizes no geographical boundaries, and its members have far too long indiscriminately preyed upon and infected the good people of our communities like a cancer. The FBI’s Safe Streets Gang Task Forces recognize no boundaries either, and we are committed to identifying, disrupting and dismantling the most violent gangs that seek to harm our communities. The FBI, along with our law enforcement partners, are committed to seeing this campaign through, and once and for all putting an end to the Gangster Disciples' reign of violence.”
According to court documents, the Gangster Disciples is a national gang active in more than 24 states with a highly organized structure including board members and governor-of-governors who each controlled geographic regions; governors, assistant governors, chief enforcers and chiefs of security for each state or regions within the state where the Gangster Disciples were active; and coordinators and leaders within each local group. To enforce discipline among Gangster Disciples and adherence to the strict rules and structure, members and associates were routinely fined, beaten and even murdered for failing to follow the gang’s rules.
The scope of the Gangster Disciples’ crimes is wide-ranging and consistent throughout the national operation. The RICO conspiracies charged here include attempted murder, narcotics trafficking, extortion, firearms crimes, obstruction of justice and other crimes in furtherance of the Gangster Disciples enterprise and to raise funds for the gang. In Georgia, for example, the Gangster Disciples brought money into the gang through, among other things, drug trafficking, robbery, carjacking, extortion, wire fraud, credit card fraud, insurance fraud and bank fraud.
The gang protected its power and operation through threats, intimidation and violence, including murder, attempted murder, assault and obstruction of justice. It also promoted the Gangster Disciples enterprise through member-only activities, including conference calls, birthday celebrations of the gang’s founder, the annual Gangster Ball, award ceremonies and other events.
The gang also provided financial and other support to members charged with or incarcerated for gang-related offenses and members who were fugitives from law enforcement were provided “safe houses” in which to hide from police. To introduce the criminal nature of the Gangster Disciples to a new member, older members and leaders in the various local groups ordered newer members to commit crimes, including murder, robbery and drug trafficking. Further, Gangster Disciples members would teach other members how to commit certain crimes, including frauds and would provide drugs on discount to other Gangster Disciples members for resale.
The Atlanta RICO conspiracy indictment names the following defendants and their alleged roles within the Gangster Disciples:
Shauntay Craig, 37, of Birmingham, held the rank of Gangster Disciples board member;
Alonzo Walton, 47, of Atlanta, held at different relevant times the positions of governor of Georgia and governor of governors, the latter position controlling Georgia, Florida, Texas, Indiana and South Carolina;
Kevin Clayton, 43, of Decatur, Georgia, was the chief enforcer for the state of Georgia;
Donald Glass, 26, of Decatur, served as a first coordinator of the eastside group of the Gangster Disciples;
Lewis Mobely, 38, of Atlanta, was an enforcer;
Vertious Wall, 40, of Marietta, was a first coordinator for the Macon Gangster Disciples group;
Adrian Jackson, 37, of San Jose, California, was the national treasurer for the Gangster Disciples;
Terrence Summers, 45, of Birmingham, held at different relevant times the positions of governor of Alabama and governor of governors for Georgia, Alabama, South Carolina and Florida;
Markell White, 43, of Atlanta, was a regional leader in Macon;
Ronald McMorris, 34, of Atlanta, was first coordinator of the Atlanta group;
Perry Green, 29, of Decatur, was a member of the Gangster Disciples and acted as enforcer of a Gangster Disciples group;
Dereck Taylor, 29, of Macon, was a member of the Gangster Disciples and acted as security for a Macon group;
Alvis O’Neal, 37,of Denver, was a senior member of and money launderer for the Gangster Disciples;
Jeremiah Covington, 32, of Valdosta, Georgia, was a first coordinator for the Valdosta region;
Antonio Ahmad, 33, of Atlanta, was the chief of security for the state of Georgia;
Eric Manney, 39, of Atlanta, was a member of the Gangster Disciples and stored multiple guns at his house;
Quiana Franklin, 33, of Birmingham, served as treasurer for the state of Alabama;
Frederick Johnson, 37, of Marietta, was a chief enforcer for a Gangster Disciples group;
Charles Wingate,25, of Conyers, Georgia, was chief of security for a Covington, Georgia group;
Vancito Gumbs, 25, of Stone Mountain, Georgia, was a member of the Gangster Disciples while at the same time serving as a police officer with the DeKalb County Police Department;
Thomas Pasby, 42, of Cochran, Georgia, was a member of the Gangster Disciples;
Denise Carter, 41, of Detroit, was a member of the Gangster Disciples;
Carlton King Jr., 25, of Cochran, was a member of the Gangster Disciples;
Kelvin Sneed, 26, of Cochran, was a member of the Gangster Disciples;
Arrie Freeney, 32, of Detroit, was a member of the Gangster Disciples;
Myrick Stevens, 26, of Madison, Wisconsin, was a member of the Gangster Disciples;
Curtis Thomas, 45, of Cochran, was a member of the Gangster Disciples;
Yohori Epps, 36,of Marietta, was a member of the Gangster Disciples; and
Michael Drummound, 49, of Marietta, was a member of the Gangster Disciples.
In addition to the RICO conspiracy, Glass and Mobely are each charged with committing or attempting to commit murder in aid of racketeering and using firearms during those crimes. Mobely, Glass, Craig, O’Neal, Covington and Travis Riley, 35, of Wichita, Kansas are also charged with various drug distribution crimes and Mobely and Glass are further charged with related firearms crimes. Walton, Ahmad and Laderris Dickerson, 45, of Chicago, are also charged with carjacking and Walton and Dickerson are charged with a related firearms offense.
The Memphis RICO conspiracy indictment names the following defendants and their alleged roles within the Gangster Disciples:
Byron Montrail Purdy, aka “Lil B” or “Ghetto,” 37, of Jackson, Tennessee, served as Gangster Disciples leader in Tennessee;
Derrick Kennedy Crumpton, aka “38,” 32, of Memphis, served as Gangster Disciples leader in Tennessee;
Demarcus Deon Crawford, aka “Trip,” 32, of Jackson, served as leader of security in Tennessee;
Henry Curtis Cooper, aka “Big Hen,” 36, of Memphis, served as leader of security in Tennessee;
Rico Terrell Harris, aka “Big Brim,” 43, of Memphis, served as leader of security in Tennessee;
Shamar Anthony James, aka “Lionheart,” 37, of Memphis, held the rank of governor of a region in Memphis;
Demario Demont Sprouse, aka “Taco,” 35, of Memphis, held the rank of chief of security of a region in Memphis;
Robert Elliott Jones, aka “Lil Rob” or “Mac Rob,” 36, of Memphis, held the rank of governor of a region in Memphis;
Denton Suggs, aka “Denny Mo” or “Diddy Mo,”40, of Memphis, held the rank of chief of security in a section of Memphis;
Santiago Megale Shaw, aka “Mac-T,” 23, of Jackson, was a member of the security team or blackout squad in Jackson;
Tarius Montez Taylor, aka “T,” 26, of Jackson, was a member of the security team or blackout squad in Jackson;
Tommy Earl Champion Jr., aka “Duct Tape,” 27, of Jackson, held the rank of chief of security of Jackson;
Cory Dewayne Bowers, aka “Bear Wayne,” 32, of Jackson, was associated with the Gangster Disciples and acted as a member of the security team in Jackson;
Gerald Eugene Hampton, aka “G30,” 30, of Jackson, held the rank of assistant chief of security and was a member of the security team’s blackout squad in Jackson;
Daniel Lee Cole, aka “D-Money,” 37, of Jackson, acted as assistant governor and assistant education coordinator for the Gangster Disciples in Jackson; and
Tommy Lee Wilkins (Holloway), aka “Tommy Gunz,” 28, of Memphis, was a member of the security team in Memphis.
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In addition to the RICO conspiracy, all 16 defendants are charged with a cocaine-distribution conspiracy, and Crawford, Shaw, Taylor, Champion and Bowers are charged with seven counts of attempted murder in aid of racketeering and using a firearm during the commission of those offenses.
The charges and allegations in the indictment are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
The Atlanta case is being investigated by the FBI Atlanta's Safe Streets Gang Task Force (composed of members of the FBI, Alpharetta Police Department (PD), Atlanta PD, Clayton County PD, DeKalb PD, Forest Park PD, GA Dept. of Community Supervision, GA Dept. of Corrections, Gwinnett County PD, and Marietta PD), Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, United States Marshal's Service and United States Postal Inspection Services. The Atlanta case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Hans B. Miller of the Criminal Division’s Organized Crime and Gang Section and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kim S. Dammers, Ryan K. Buchanan and Stephanie Gabay-Smith of the Northern District of Georgia.
The Memphis case is being investigated by a multi-agency task force consisting of the FBI; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Memphis Multi-Agency Gang Unit; the Memphis PD; the Shelby County, Tennessee Sheriff’s Office; the Jackson PD Gang Enforcement Team; the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation; the Madison County, Tennessee Sheriff’s Department; the 28th District West Tennessee Drug Task Force; the Tipton County, Tennessee, Sheriff's Office; the 26th Judicial District Attorney General’s Office; the 25th Judicial District Attorney General’s Office; the Atascosa County, Tennessee District Attorney’s Office; and the Shelby County District Attorney General’s Office. The Memphis case is being prosecuted by David N. Karpel of the Criminal Division’s Organized Crime and Gang Section and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jerry Kitchen, Samuel Stringfellow, Beth Boswell, and Michelle Parks of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Tennessee.
The BGDN has in the past made several attempts to clean its name and image. Some of the Gangster Disciples members have taken out ‘B’ from the gang’s name, and go simply by Gangster Disciples (GDs). The GDs spent some time in the political world working with other gangs such as the Vice Lords, Young Lords, Black Disciples, and Latin King through the ‘Growth and Development Movement”. Many GDs gang members not located in Chicago often go by the original name Black Gangster Disciples (BGDN). BGDN is also part of a phenomenon taking place in the army, where gang members are joining the army. The GDs are said to be found in the U.S. and American bases oversea. The gang often leaves their graffiti in bases.
| Gang Name | Gangster Disciples |
| Territory | US NationWide |
| Years Active | 1960s-Present |
| Ethnicity | Predominantly Black |
| Symbols | 6 Point Star, Pitchforks, Heart with wings, Tails and horns |
| Aliases | GDs, GDN, 7-4, 7-4-14 |
| Colors | Black, Blue, & Gray |
| Members | 40-50,000+ |
| Phrases | GD till the world blow |
| Criminal Activities | Drug trafficking, robbery, extortion, murder, prostitution, Boosting (d-queens) |
| Allies | Folk Nation, Crips, Zoe Pound, Black Guerilla Family, and Black Mafia Family, Some Black Disciple sets, Some People Nation sets |
| Enemies | People Nation, Black P.Stones, Vice Lords, Four Corner Hustlers, Bloods, Latin Kings, Nortenos, Surenos, White Supremacist gangs, & Black Disciples |
The Gangster Disciples’ history can be traced back to the 1960s. Larry Hoover, often regarded as the founder of the Gangster Disciples, was born in November 30, 1950 in Jackson, Mississippi. Larry Hoover moved with his family to Chicago when he was 4, when he turned 13, he joined a gang called the Supreme Gangsters which was located in his neighborhood. While a sophomore in high school, Larry Hoover was gunned down by a rival gang member on his first day of school and got kicked out as a result. While out of school, and with no job, he turned to a life of crime, ranging from prostitutes, gamblers, and drug dealers. Larry Hoover eventually became the leader of the Supreme Gangsters, and in 1966 Hoover and the gang overpowered the King Cobras , which forced the remaining cobras to ally themselves with the Black Disciples Nation which was under David Barksdale’s control. Larry Hoover would later merge the Gangster Disciples with numerous other gangs to form the Gangster Nation. Gangster Nation was a merge between the Supreme Gangsters, African Sniper Gangsters, Raven Gangsters, High Supreme Gangsters, Maniac Gangsters,Russian Gangsters, Mafia Gangsters, 75th Street Syndicate Gangsters, Gent town Gangsters, Outlaw Gangsters, 95th Street Supreme Gangsters, the Dells Gangsters, East side Syndicate Gangsters, West Side Supreme Gangsters, Racketeer Gangsters, Imperial Gangsters, and the Black Pimp Gangsters of the West Side.
The Gangster Nation’s size was increasing; however, they were still trailing the Black Disciples and the Black P. Stone Rangers. David Barksdale was the leader of the Black Disciples, and Jeff Fort was the leader of the Black P. Stones. Jeff Fort wanted to join forces with Larry Hoover and promised a high leadership in the new, realizing that his new position would be lower than his current, Larry Hoover declined. In 1969, instead of joining forces with the Black P. Stone, Larry Hoover formed an alliance with the Black Disciples which caused them to adapt a new name “Black Gangster Disciples”(BGDN). The BGDN alliance ended the war that was going on between the Gangster Nation and the Black Disciples in the 60s.
The BGDN started turning their ways around after the formation of the new alliance and participated in numerous community programs. The gang opened restaurants and gas stations and even went as far as to steer young kids in school toward the right direction. On the surface, it looked as if the BGDN was moving toward a positive direction; however, in beginning in the 1970s, massive amount of drugs started to flood the very same black community they were helping. The BGDN was deep in the drug trade, many of their members started to get rich off the drug trade, while some of their members fell victim to the addicted substances they were selling. Larry Hoover and Andrew Young were found guilty of Murder in 1973 and were sentenced to 150-200 years each for murdering William Young, a drug addict believed to have stolen one of the gang’s supplies of drug. Joshua would later test testify against both Hoover and Young, and saying that he witnessed both of them kidnapping William Young.
David Barksdale would later die on September 2, 1974 due to Kidney failure from a gunshot wood he suffered in 1968. Due to the death of Barksdale, a new leader needed to be appointed to run BGDN, the decision came down to Larry Hoover and Jerome Shorty Freeman, it was decided that Hoover would be the new leader. Four years after Hoover became the leader of the BGDN, Jerome Freeman decided to dismember the alliance, resulting in the Black Disciples and the Gangster Nation heading separate ways.
With King Barksdale dead and King King Hoover in prison, the police were baffled as to how the GDs were stll able to amass massive amount of profits and keep growing. Hoover’s power reached a pinnacle when he created a new alliance of gangs known as Folk Nation, and managed to order a prison riot in Pontiac prison located in Illinois which resulted with the death of 3 dead officers. The new folk alliance resembled that of BGDN and consisted of both BGDs and GDs as well as numerous other gangs. Hoover succeeded in bringing in some of the major and fastest growing gangs in Chicago into the alliance. Within that time period, Hoover also managed created a Latino faction of the gang which went by the name Spanish Gangsters Disciples.
The alliance between the BGDs and BDs was shot lived, in 1991, an inter alliance war was started and they started shooting at one another. The war between the two gangs set bad precedence for the folk nation, which would later cause multiple other inter alliance wars to happen. When the war broke out between the BGDs and the BDs, the BGDs were so mad that they removed ‘Black’ from their name and went simply by ‘Gangster Disciples’(GDs). The GDs also became the biggest gang in Chicago in the 1990s. Larry Hoover’s power over the gang was so great, that in 1993 about 10,000 Gangster Disciples showed up to hear Hoover speak on a phone from prison. During the meeting Hoover pushed Growth and Development concept, which claimed that GDs were no longer operating in the criminal world. However, in 1995, in an effort to hurt the GDs’ leader ship, operation Headache was launched, which took down 39 high ranking Gangster Disciples members. As a direct result of this operation, Hoover was given a life sentence and moved to a more secured prison location.
About every major gangs have a unique system of symbols to communicate their respective rivalries and alliances. Gangster Disciples use a mix of symbols that represent the GDs and/or the Folk Nation, they also use symbols from that of rival gangs, usually in inverted manner as a sign of disrespect. Gangster Disciples are said to wear blue and black as their color, they are often seen wearing the Georgetown Hoyas and Duke Blue Devils clothing
Gangster Disciples’ main symbol is the six-pointed star which looks very much like the Star of David. The Star of David is often said to be a tribute to their founder David Barksdale, the star’s six points stand for love, life, loyalty, understanding, knowledge, and wisdom.
| LOVE | Love of the Nation is greater than mere love alone, because we have a brotherhood in which love is as deep as the deep blue sea. TRUE BLUE LOVE |
| LIFE | Life commitment to the Nation for the betterment of ourselves as well as the Nation and each committed brother within the Nation, and our Nation's teachings, laws, creeds, symbols, philosophy and defense. |
| LOYALTY | To yourself, and each committed brother of our Nation. |
| UNITY | Collectively embraces all concepts, ideas, and actions that apply to our Nation. Togetherness is essential in order for us to continue our survival. |
| KNOWLEDGE | Is insight, therefore it is priceless, it gives one the ability to apply rational judgement. Knowledge is the ability to have a conscious awareness, and knowledge gained and not passed along is wasted knowledge. |
| UNDERSTANDING | Shows that we are able to communicate effectively, bringing about agreements, and a positive state of mind. |
The Gangster Disciples ranks are:
- Chairman Of the Board
- Board of Directors (2) (Prison & Street)
- Governors/Area Coordinator
- Street Enforcers
- Soldiers/Non Members
Like all gangs, gangster disciples has its fair share of enemies which includes but not limited to People Nation, Black P.Stones, Vice Lords, Bloods, Latin Kings, Surenos, White Supremacist gangs, Nortenos & Black Disciples. Black Disciples often refer to themselves as GDK, meaning Gangster Disciple Killers, and Gangster Disciples often refer to themselves as BDK meaning Black Disciple Killers. The main allies of the Gangster Disciples are Folk Nation gangs, Crips, Zoe Pound, BGF, as well as numerous other gangs.
| Lil Scrappy |
Lil Jay|Geto Boyz|Lil Mister|Larry Hoover|||
Sets:
STL/EBT/Tookaville/Tutu Gang/Boss City
Bricksquad/D Block/Aikiville/JoJo World
M.O.B/Junebug Gang/Scrapp Gang/Bay Bay World
50 Strong/Dell World/Dougo Gang
CMB/Crazyville/Joc Block
PBG/Insane Cutthroats/Freakyville/Pappy Town/Mosey Squad
075 Wuga World
Killa Ward/Freako World/LY City/BK Gang
Gangster Disciples Flag
Gangster Disciples Home Mission
http://chicagogangs.org/index.php?pr=gdn
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gangster_Disciples