Aryan Circle members, associates in North Texas indicted on federal drug offenses
.jpg "Fifteen members and associates of the Aryan Circle were in custody Monday, facing federal charges of distributing methamphetamine in North Texas.")
Fifteen members and associates of the white supremacist organization Aryan Circle have been indicted on federal charges of distributing methamphetamine in North Texas.
The just-unsealed federal indictments accuse the defendants of one count each of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and one count of possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute.
Eleven defendants were in federal custody and four others were in state custody. The eleven have made initial federal court appearances and they remained in federal custody Monday.
The indictment accuses the members and associates of distributing the drug from January until this month.
The defendants resided in an area near Lake Tawakoni, about 50 miles east of Dallas.
Authorities identified several of the defendants as members of the Aryan Circle, a white supremacist gang based primarily in Texas.
The indictment noted that the Aryan Circle is a prison gang formed when some Aryan Brotherhood of Texas members split off to form what they believed was a pure group.
The Aryan Circle's white supremacy ideology, federal agents said, often took a backseat to criminal ventures such as drug dealing. Female members of the Aryan Circle were often referred to as "Featherwoods."
Federal authorities also pointed out that despite their differences, the Aryan Circle often collaborates with Mexican gangs and cartels for drug distribution.
The indictment identified the suspects as Crystal Leann Starkey, 36; Michael Paul Watts, 28; Jason Wayne McClure, 43; Kellie Lea Locke, 37; Michael Brandon Powell, 43; Jody Heather Bausch, aka Jody Land, 41; Scott Ralph Land, 47; Jeremiah "Wicked" McGregor, 40; James "Bo" Goodin, 35; Nicole Culpepper, 27; Kyle Ketchum, 30; Ember Berg, 33; Shannon Morgan, 42; Aaron Marrs, 39; and Leslie Cates, 34.
If the defendants are convicted, federal prosecutors are seeking property including a 12-gauge shotgun, a 20-gauge shotgun, a .22-caliber pistol, a 40-caliber pistol and a .38-caliber revolver.
Agents with the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Texas Department of Public Safety led the investigation. Those agencies also have been assisted by Quinlan police, the Henderson County Sheriff's Office, Hunt County Sheriff's Office, Rockwall County Sheriff's Office and the Van Zandt Sheriff's Office.
Domingo Ramirez Jr., 817-390-7763,@mingoramirezjr
This story was originally published November 20, 2017 at 12:40 PM with the headline "Aryan Circle members, associates in North Texas indicted on federal drug offenses."