HOUSTON, Texas – Two members of the Aryan Brotherhood of Texas gang pleaded guilty to federal racketeering charges, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson of the Southern District of Texas.
Ben Christian Dillon, 40, of Houston, and James Marshall Meldrum, 40, of Dallas, each pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Sim Lake in the Southern District of Texas to one count of conspiracy to participate in racketeering activity.
According to court documents, Dillon and Meldrum agreed to commit multiple acts of murder, robbery, arson, kidnapping, and narcotics trafficking on behalf of the ABT gang. The two men admitted to being ABT gang members and engaging in multiple acts in support of the criminal enterprise.
Dillon admitted to trafficking in methamphetamine, acting as an enforcer to collect drug debts owed to the ABT enterprise, committing acts of arson for the gang, and attempting to kill a fellow ABT gang member who had been marked for death by senior ABT officials. Meldrum admitted to trafficking in methamphetamine and severely beating a subordinate gang member.
The Aryan Brotherhood of Texas was established in the early 1980s within the Texas prison system and modeled itself after and adopted many of the precepts and writings of the Aryan Brotherhood, a California-based prison gang formed in the 1960s.
At sentencing, Dillon and Meldrum each face a maximum penalty of life in prison. Dillon’s sentencing hearing is scheduled for April 24, 2013, and Meldrum’s sentencing hearing is scheduled for September 26, 2013.
This case is being investigated by a multi-agency task force consisting of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; the Drug Enforcement Administration; FBI; U.S. Marshals Service; Federal Bureau of Prisons; U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations; Texas Rangers; Texas Department of Public Safety; Montgomery County, Texas, Sheriff’s Office; Houston Police Department-Gang Division; Texas Department of Criminal Justice – Office of Inspector General; Harris County, Texas, Sheriff’s Office; Tarrant County Sheriff’s Office; Atascosa County, Texas, Sheriff’s Office; Orange County, Texas, Sheriff’s Office; and Waller County, Texas, Sheriff’s Office.
Related Federal Cases
- John Oliver Manning, Racketeering, Texas 2011 · California
- Roden Shane Holt, Violent Assault and Firearms Conspiracy, Texas 2016 · Louisiana
- Israel Alberto Rivas Gomez, Kidnapping and Murder in Aid of Racketeering, California 2022 · Idaho
- Taezhon Tyreik Kelly, Murder in Aid of Racketeering, Oregon 2020 · Louisiana
- Samuel Velasco Gurrola, Racketeering, Texas 2016 · Washington
Key Facts
- State: Texas
- Category: Violent Crime|Organized Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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