Feds Indict 9 Alleged Chicago Street Gang Members

Federal prosecutors say they've indicted nine alleged members of a violent Chicago street gang on murder and drug charges.

The charges were announced Thursday in Chicago federal court. Officials say the nine defendants are members of a gang known as the Hobos. Grand jurors indicted them on charges including murder, attempted murder, robbery and narcotics distribution. Four of the defendants are accused of shooting four people to death between 2006 and 2009.

“The indictment portrays a gang with virtually no restraint on its ruthless use of violence to further its goals,” said Gary S. Shapiro, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois. “The gang’s alleged murders, robberies and drug dealing invited our employing the federal racketeering laws to prosecute the full scope of their crimes."

Law enforcement described the gang as a tight-knit, violent crew that originated in the former Robert Taylor Homes. They said the gang banded together from factions of the Gangster Disciples and Black Disciples.

The indictments come amid calls from leading Illinois politicians for federal, state and city law enforcement to do more to stem violence in Chicago.

“I applaud the hard working men and women of the Chicago Police Department, U.S. Attorney’s office, FBI, IRS and others involved with the task forces that helped to bring federal charges against these dangerous individuals," Mayor Rahm Emanuel. "By working together and bringing the resources of the federal government to bear on violent criminal networks, we can keep gangs, guns and drugs off of our streets."