8 Alleged Bloods Members Are Indicted

Kidnapping, Assault Charges Mark First D.C. Crime Linked to West Coast Gang

Six men and two women, suspected of being members of a District-based sect of the West Coast Bloods gang, have been indicted on charges of kidnapping, assault and forcing a teenage member to have sex with four men, local and federal authorities said yesterday.

The men and women charged say they are members of the 662 Boss Piru gang, a subset of the notorious Bloods gang that originated in California, officials said.

Authorities allege that on June 9, an 18-year-old who was four months pregnant was forced into a vehicle, beaten and later sexually assaulted at two locations, according to court papers. Afterward, the woman flagged down a Metro Transit Police officer at the Minnesota Avenue Metro station and reported the assault. The Washington Post is withholding the woman's name because it does not usually identify victims of sexual assault.

In recent months, the Bloods and the Crips, both West Coast-based gangs, have been linked to violence in Maryland and Virginia. The arrests mark the first time that Bloods have been charged with criminal conspiracy in the District. This summer, D.C. Police Chief Cathy L. Lanier raised concerns about the gang's movement, noting that there have been instances of youths wearing the gang's trademark red and flashing gang signs in District neighborhoods, including Trinidad. Until now, authorities had linked the group to no specific crime.

"The horrific and violent kidnapping and assault of a young female gang member in this case by her alleged fellow gang members is a prime example of why we must be vigilant in not allowing gangs to get a foothold in our community," U.S. Attorney Jeffrey A. Taylor said in a statement. But he is unsure how widespread the problem is in the District.

"What remains unclear is whether this sect is officially sanctioned by the West Coast or whether they are holding themselves out as 'Bloods,' " said Channing Phillips, Taylor's spokesman.

In this incident, according to court papers, the 18-year-old was alleged to have been a gang member who fell out of favor and was being punished for attempting to leave the gang. The alleged assaults occurred in the 4900 block of Astor Place SE and the 4500 block of Grant Street NE. Authorities maintain that the 662 Boss Piru gang uses violence to discipline those who are considered disloyal.

Authorities said the leader of the group is Albert M. Price, 31, who had been on probation since 1996 for assault with a deadly weapon. He allegedly is the father of the 18-year-old's baby. Police linked Price to the crime scene using a Global Positioning System device.

Price was wearing an ankle bracelet attached May 27 for violating his probation, according to Leonard Sipes, a spokesman for the Court Services and Offender Supervision Agency, which oversees parole and probation in the District.

Currently, the agency uses GPS devices to monitor 850 people and shares that information with D.C. police to help solve crimes.

D.C. Council member Yvette Alexander (D-Ward 7) said police in her district notified her of the arrests, which marked the Bloods' infiltration into her area of the city.

"It was shocking to me," she said. "No residents have expressed to me anything out of the ordinary except young men hanging out and selling drugs. I have not received any information from them about gangs. They need to be educated if this is out there."

Staff writer Avis Thomas-Lester contributed to this report.