HOUSTON – James Francis Sampsell, aka ‘Skitz,’ 44, of Odessa, pleaded guilty to racketeering charges related to his membership in the Aryan Brotherhood of Texas gang (ABT), announced United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson and Acting Assistant Attorney General Mythili Raman of the Criminal Division.
Sampsell’s accomplice, Fredrick Michal Villarreal, aka ‘Big Mike,’ 35, of Houston, pleaded guilty to the same charges. Both men pleaded guilty 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, Sampsell, Villarreal, and other ABT gang members and associates agreed to commit multiple acts of murder, robbery, arson, kidnapping, and narcotics trafficking on behalf of the ABT gang. The ABT was established in the early 1980s within the Texas prison system and modeled itself after the Aryan Brotherhood, a California-based prison gang.
The gang’s primary concern was the protection of white inmates and white supremacy/separatism. Over time, the ABT expanded its criminal enterprise to include illegal activities for profit. Court documents allege that the ABT enforced its rules and promoted discipline among its members, prospects, and associates through murder, attempted murder, conspiracy to murder, arson, assault, robbery, and threats against those who violated the rules or posed a threat to the enterprise.
A person must be sponsored by another gang member to be considered for ABT membership. Once sponsored, a prospective member must serve an unspecified term as a prospect while their conduct is observed by the members of the ABT.
Sampsell and Villarreal face a maximum penalty of life in prison at sentencing, scheduled for October 7, 2014. They are two of 36 defendants charged with conducting racketeering activity through the ABT criminal enterprise, among other charges. To date, 21 defendants have pleaded guilty.
The 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; Homeland Security Investigations; Texas Rangers; Texas Department of Public Safety; Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office; Houston Police Department-Gang Division; Texas Department of Criminal Justice – Office of Inspector General; sheriff’s offices in Harris, Tarrant, Atascosa, Orange, and Waller Counties; police departments in Alvin, Carrollton, and Mesquite Texas; as well as the Montgomery and Atascosa County District Attorney’s Offices.
The case is being prosecuted by the Criminal Division’s Organized Crime and Gang Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Texas. The investigation and prosecution of this case are a result of the tireless efforts of law enforcement agencies and prosecutors working together to dismantle the ABT’s criminal enterprise and bring its members to justice.
Related Federal Cases
- Charles Lee Roberts, Racketeering, Texas 2013 · California
- Ronald Lee Prince, Racketeering Charges, Texas 2014 · California
- Federal Defendant Brought to Justice for Racketeering, New York NY,… · New York
- Amilcar Romero, Racketeering Conspiracy, Los Angeles CA, 2023 · Texas
- Roosevelt TuTu Sumpter, Racketeering Conspiracy, California 2023 · California
Key Facts
- State: Texas
- Category: Organized Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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