According to the indictment, on Sept. 19, 2020, members of the gang and friends were celebrating their fifth-year anniversary at the Sterling Banquet Hall in northwest Houston. One of the members allegedly invited three members of the Tattoo Crue Motorcycle Club, and shortly after they arrived, several Homietos members were accused of attacking their rivals.
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Two victims required treatment at the hospital, the indictment says.
Authorities say the Homietos gang has members not only in Houston but chapters that spread throughout the state. They allegedly recruit people who are predominantly convicted felons, a large number of whom are current or former Houstone Tango Blast gang members.
Steve Cook, who's a law enforcement veteran who has studied motorcycle gangs, said the group at the center of these allegations has not been around long, but members have been known to be involved in violence.
"They' re a very violent organization," Cook said. "They've established a pretty notorious reputation in a very short amount of time."
The following members of the gang were arrested last week in Houston:
- Joe Barrera, 35
- Joe Rios, 47
- Edgar Hinojosa, 38
- William Espinoza, 47
- Mario Gomez, 50
- Morgan Cooper, 49
- Moises Soriano, 41
- Joseph Gomez, 37
- Ricardo Quinone, 36
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Additionally, Rudolph Lopez was arrested in Fort Worth; Raymond Burnett was arrested in Alvin; and Jesse Mulrein was arrested in Dallas.
All 12 are charged with assault with a dangerous weapon in aid of racketeering and conspiracy to do so and discharging a firearm during a crime of violence. The assault charge carries up to 20 years in prison as a possible penalty, while the conspiracy charges carry a potential three-year sentence. If convicted of the discharging a firearm count, they also face a minimum of 10 years and up to life, which must be served consecutively to any other prison term imposed.
Cook described the Homietos Outlaw Motorcycle Gang as an organized-crime group, explaining to ABC13 how the organization operates.
"There's a chain of command, and orders come down from the top," he said. "There are regular members, and then, they have people who have positions of power within the gang."
An indictment is a formal accusation of criminal conduct, not evidence.
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