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se eemnnatttee 22 lilies © Aon emcee’ De gate ~ ll RL moving into the area,” a gang expert said. “When people like that start moving in, it can meayy only one thing — war.” 0 iP Of the most recent cla between the two gangs occurred on Oct. 9 in Bakers- field. An assassination team —~ Suspected to be from the “Mexi- can Mafia” — “executed” a re- puted NF member and his younger brother. - Two men and a woman held 26-year-old Danny Reyes and his girlfriend captive in his home. The assassins waited un- ti! Danny’s brother, Ronald Reyes, 32, arrived seven hours ater. The brothers were handcuffed and tied with ropes. The girl - was tied to a bed. Both men were stabbed re- ly and the younger broth- er Was shot five times. The girl- friend was not harmed. wyers represen pects in the killings have talked the judge into closing hearings in the case, fearing for the de- fendants’ lives. In San Jose, police suspect there has been at ‘feast one gatg-related killing and a num- ber of stabbings. the body of & young man — apparently the victim of a gang tion — was found in an or- chafd in the eastern foothills. And, in Santa Clara County Jail, there has been a marked inerease in stabbing cases. Ex- perts say some of these are probably gang-related. Tipped off to the potential trouble, San Jose police say they feel they'll be able to keep ine lid on gang violence in the . cily. ‘ ' t They say NF members have told them about the Mafia mov- ne into the prea, but until now e repo ve not been con- firmed" “The existence of prison gangs is ed Yatt Capt. Larry Stuefloten said. “Many of these people are coming ont. It is nat- ural to assume they are not | going to abandon their personal gang friendships and loyalties once they’re on the street,” Still, San Jose police don’t ex- pect a shooting war here in the near future. Their observation on this point, however, is at odds with that of a number of state prison gang experts. And, Capt. Stuefloten con- cedes the gangs are “definitely something law enforcement has to reckon with.” One area of concern is the San Jose drug scene. A narcotics of ficer revealed that a study of dope usage reveals approxi- mately 4,700 heroin addicts in the area. The average junkie uses $60 worth of heroin — “H” or “smack” ~— each day. “The NF isn’t strong outside prison,” he said. “They need money to get their thing togeth- er,” But, the vast narcotics market here may offer them a tempting business opportunity. Until recently, lawmen didn't - know how big “Nuestra Fami- lia” was on the outside. ” But today, they eatimate “con- servatively” that San Jose is home-base for 80 to 40 hard- core NF members. The “Nuestra Familia” mem- bers ~— they have titles that range from “soldado" or soldier to captain or “padre” — are — called “farmers” by the “Mexi- can Mafia.” Both organisations are pre- dominantly Mexican-American in membership. 157 The NF was formed in 1966 inside the walls of a state pris- on. Its original aim was to pro- vide the “farmers,” the C ca. nos who came from San & Gilroy, Watsonville, the San Joaquin Valley, a defense against harassment by the.“Mexican Mafia.* . For a time there was an un- easy peace between the two Chi- cano groups within the prisons. But, then, in 1968, violence flared and the gangs declared war on each other. Although the war has been bloody — complete with its Mafia-style “contract” ktllings — it has stayed within pris- on Systern. Outside the detention} factli- ties, the “Mexican Seemed content to control most Of the street crime in the ‘pre- dominantly Chicano East Los Angeles area. _ ; But then something to the “Mexican Mafia.” “The ‘Mexican Mafia’ met with leaders of ‘Cosa Nostra’ (the Sicilian Mafia) and told thern they plannsd to take over the state's narcotics trade,” one of the state’s top au the prison gangs, said. “They told the ‘Cosal(Nostra’ leaders they knew there 16 ‘Cosa Nostra’ people in prison in Californta,” he continued. “They told the "Cosa Nostra’ if the Mexican group met with any re- sistance in its plans for a state- wide narcotics empire, the 15 would be executed in prison.” The result? _ “The ‘Cosa Nostra’ apparently backed down. They've en started using ‘Mexican Mafia’ members to do their dirty work ~— as hit men (murder-for-! specialists) and errand boys." afia’”