MILWAUKEE (WTAQ) - State, regional and federal officials are announcing the arrest of over two dozen violent gang members in southeast Wisconsin and northern Illinois.
Special Agent in Charge Justin Tolomeo of the FBI Milwaukee Division announced Thursday that 28 members and associates of the Maniac Latin Disciples (MLD) gang were arrested on federal and state charges ranging from narcotics trafficking to armed robbery.
According to a statement, members of the Maniac Latin Disciples allegedly operated a continuing criminal enterprise that profited from trafficking drugs in bulk, armed robberies, and employing violence against their community through multiple shootings.
In a cooperative effort to combat MLD’s threat, dozens of law enforcement agents participated in the operation and were able to seize vehicles, weapons, body armor, ammunition, more than 40 pounds of marijuana and cocaine; over $80,000 in cash from over 20 different locations throughout southeast Wisconsin and northern Illinois.
Below are the names and information of alleged MLD members arrested in Thursday’s operation:- Gregory D. Tirado, Jr., age 28
- Melissa Rios, age 34
- Juan Paul Guajardo, age 41
- Jose Perez, age 42
- Juan C. Ramirez, age 32
- Frederick A. Evans, age 54
- Martin L. Lazcon, age 24
- Brian Johnson, age 22
- Gregory D. Tirado, Sr., age 46
- Janet Serrano, age 20
- Tyler M. Christman, age 26
- Ashley B. Craddock, age 20
- Jason R. Lopez, age 39
- Bradley R. Sorenson, age 25
- Marelo Ortiz-Cartagena, age 68
- Ernesto N. Perez, age 41
- Marco A. Munoz, age 25
- Marcello Tirado, age 19
- Angel H. Reyes, age 45
- Eric J. Minkey, age 38
- Trevian Dumas, age 22
- Pedro Juarez, age 36
The FBI's Southeastern Wisconsin Regional Gang Task Force executed this operation which aimed to dismantle the MLD's violent grip over the region.
The agencies involved in Thursday’s operation included the Racine Police Department and SWAT team, the Racine County Sheriff’s Department and SWAT team, the Kenosha Police Department, the Kenosha County Sheriff’s Office and SWAT team, the Sturtevant Police Department, the Mount Pleasant Police Department, the Caledonia Police Department, New Berlin Police Department, the Milwaukee Police Department and the Wisconsin High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Task Force, the Drug Enforcement Administration of Milwaukee, the United States Marshals Service, the Milwaukee and Chicago FBI Field Offices.