Gangs in Buffalo part one

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) - No one investigates like News 4. It is a problem that is not going away anytime soon. Gangs are in the Buffalo area, and law enforcement experts say they're growing by recruiting new members as young as 14-years-old.

Pastor Darius Pridgen said, "Just drive through some of the inner cities. You'll see little Saddam Husseins right there."

They are as young as 14-years-old.

Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown said, "They are killing themselves and they're killing other people."

They're on the street, searching for a purpose.

It's a vicious cycle.

Paul Moskal said, "Weapons, drugs, violence, homicide."

Gibson: "The streets right now. It's chaos. It's crazy right now."

Just how many gangs are operating on the streets of Buffalo right now?

News 4 crime consultant Paul Moskal said, "I think a more realistic number may be 50. But each one of these gangs you might have anywhere from a half dozen to 25 or 30 young adults who are actively engaged in some kind of criminal activity."

The bulk of the gang activity involves illegal drug sales. And according to law enforcement, some of the demand is coming from outside the city.

Erie County Sheriff's Office Detective Alan Rozansky said, "The customers are people that are coming in from different areas of the county."

"Bringing either money or stolen property or guns retrieved in burglaries."

"They then bring those items for their drug habits to the city."

Pastor Darius Pridgen, who advises the state on juvenile justice matters, calls it a national crisis.

Pastor Darius Pridgen (True Bethel Baptist Church) said, "Until it begins to hit those outer ring suburbs, and it'll never be considered a national crisis. That's when it's going to be considered. Oh, it definitely has started."

So who are these gang members from the city?

They're young kids from poor neighborhoods. Some come from broken homes. Some are without a positive role model.

And that makes them easy prey for gangs looking to recruit.

Moskal said, "Children look for people they can emulate. They look for leadership in their personal lives. And when that's lacking they gravitate to people who give it to them, for whatever reason."

Pastor Pridgen said, "Where do you think that those who come out of prison, who can not find a job go? They go to the poorest neighborhoods. Well, if they're in the poorest neighborhoods that means they're going to influence the poorest children."

The FBI believes from time to time there's a presence of national gang members in the Buffalo-area.

One that's active, structured and organized is the Latin Kings, a Chicago based group formed in the 1940s.

The gang's original intent was to overcome racism and prejudice.

But that's changed in the last 60 years.

In Buffalo, the Latin Kings began to surface in within the last few years.

Buffalo FBI agent James Jancewicz said, "They get up every day, the members, to commit crimes in western New York."

Unlike typical street gangs, the Latin Kings operate with a level of sophistication, even more so than the Mafia, according to Buffalo FBI agent James Jancewicz.

Jancewicz said, "They elect somebody to lead the gang. They have lower members who have specific levels of responsibility and jobs that they do. They hold regular meetings in Buffalo."

In April, six alleged leaders of the gang's Buffalo chapter were indicted on drug trafficking charges following a takedown by the FBI's Safe Streets Task Force.

Despite the effort, the Kings and other street gangs still wield influence in parts of the city.

News 4's Luke Moretti asked, "Do gangs have the upper hand right now?"

Paul Moskal said, "I don't know if they have the upper hand. They certainly have tools at their disposal that are almost beyond law enforcement's control."

Pastor Pridgen said, "They're more organized to run the streets than any block club, than any church, than any community organization. They're there, and they're organized."