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Seventeen Alleged Gang Members and Associates Charged with RICO Conspiracy, Murder and Other Violent Crimes
HOUSTON, Texas – A federal grand jury has returned a superseding indictment involving the Homietos outlaw motorcycle gang, a criminal enterprise that allegedly controlled territory throughout the Houston area.
According to the indictment, Homietos OMG was an organization engaged in crimes such as murder, robbery, narcotics distribution and witness intimidation. The gang allegedly formed in 2015 in the Houston area as an extension of the Tango Blast prison gang, then expanded beyond Houston and Texas.
The superseding indictment, returned under seal March 11, also alleges overt acts in furtherance of the conspiracy including directives to engage in violence against rivals. Some of the allegations include a February 2020 shooting of a rival outlaw motorcycle gang member in Harris County, a September 2020 assault and robbery involving members of another motorcycle club at a Homietos anniversary party in Houston, and multiple April 14, 2023, shootings that allegedly resulted in the deaths of three rival gang members.
The 17 alleged gang members and associates are charged with racketeering conspiracy. Several also face allegations of racketeering murder, attempted murder and assault; and/or firearms offenses.
Ralph Eugene Kellum, aka REK, 42, Vidor, is set to make his initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Christina A. Bryan at 10 a.m. March 19. Romeo Jose Ferrer, aka Primo, 36, Kingsville, is expected to appear in Corpus Christi at 9:45 a.m. Mark Anthony Magallan, aka Loco, 51, Houston, will have a detention hearing at 2 p.m. before Judge Bryan March 19.
The indictment alleges a pattern of violence, intimidation and murder to expand the reach of a criminal enterprise and settle scores on our streets and highways. Acting U.S. Attorney John G.E. Marck stated, "That kind of lawlessness has no place in the Southern District of Texas. Anyone who attempts to turn our roadways into battlegrounds should expect an aggressive federal response, and today we delivered on that commitment."
According to the charges, Ferrer, Magallan, and Kellum along with Joe Frank Barrera, aka LJ, 37, Houston, and Bryce Clay Hazleton Cook, aka Cowboy, 28, Angleton, are all charged with engaging in a pattern of racketeering activity that included violent retaliation against members of rival gangs. The charges further allege that on April 14, 2023, Homietos members traveling in a convoy on an interstate highway encountered members of the rival Bandidos motorcycle gang, and Magallan allegedly shot and killed a Bandido member. Ferrer and Kellum allegedly shot and killed two other Bandidos and wounded a third.
The case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Houston Field Office, with the assistance of numerous federal, state, and local law enforcement partners.
The superseding indictment was returned under seal on March 11, and the defendants have made initial appearances in federal court in Houston or are expected to in the near future.
This is an ongoing investigation, and further information will be released as it becomes available.
Key Facts
- State: Texas
- Category: Violent Crime|Organized Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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