Federal prosecutors unveil more racketeering charges against street gang members

Federal prosecutors on Wednesday announced a new set of racketeering charges against street gang members.

Minnesota U.S. Attorney Andrew Luger unveiled the charges against 11 affiliated Lows street gang members during a press conference with federal, state and local officials at the federal courthouse in downtown Minneapolis.

The Lows operate out of North Minneapolis and are the main rivals of the Highs, who claim territory on the opposite side of Broadway Avenue.

The defendants charged as part of the indictment were part of what Luger called “a pattern of unthinkable and reprehensible violence” between 2021 and 2024 and are said to have been involved in seven shootings, amounting to 10 victims and five murders . All have been detained on Wednesday.

“The murders and shootings alleged in this indictment should shock the conscience of every law-abiding citizen in the city,” Luger said. “To put it simply, the existence of the Lows gang poses a threat to the sanctity of human life and we will continue to take all appropriate steps under the law to remove this threat.”

Wednesday’s indictment is a continuation of a strategy by Luger’s office to crack down on street gangs by prosecuting them as organized crime syndicates.

Last May, an indictment of 45 defendants marked the first time Luger had used the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act — more commonly known as RICO — against Minneapolis street gangs. With additional charges over the past year and a half, charges have now been brought against 94 defendants with gang affiliations.

“By charging these 11 Lows members under RICO, we are once again addressing the gang as a whole,” Luger said. “As alleged in the indictment, the Lows engaged in a long-running criminal enterprise involving assaults, murders, gun-trafficking, the sale of fentanyl and other crimes in furtherance of their deadly conduct.”

So far, 41 gang members and associates have either pleaded guilty or been convicted at trial as part of that effort, according to the US Attorney’s Office.