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Show Al6 The Salt Lake Tribune GangLife: There’s No Easy WayOut @ Continued from A-1 invasion rob policein theSalt not won members A lot of times a gang member is real cowardly. They drive by and shoot out of a car window says Pat MeCarthy, a Chicago police detective who specializes Asian crime. Salt Lake Area Gang Project, sees the foolishness attributed to the valley's 3.200 documented gang members. These people — who rangein age from 10 to 53 — live in neighborhoods rich and poor. and represent virtually all ethnic groups. The crimes they are committing range from theft to mur- der. Andtheincrease in incidents is staggering — from 388in 1991 “These Asian gangs though, it takes a lot of moxie to do a home invasion robbery and pistol-whip somebody In April, McCarthy will travel to Salt Lake City to teach Utah police officers about taking down Asian gang members. McCarthyis the past president of the International Association of Asian Crime Investigators and has been assigned to Chicago's FBI Asian- UTAH GANGS Sunday, March 31, 1996 crime task force the past 642 use radio scanners to capture a In Las Vegas, where Oriental Posse has ties to the Horny E gang, the Asian gangs are carving out their own crime niche andare and smart enough not to mess withSin re ly hit the Wasatch Front but ane I don’t know who's do: ing that years City’s traditional big-time mob- sters, says Las Vegas Metro Po lice Det. Mark Fowler When they docross, we won't know about it,” Fowler says. The Asian gang members“will befish food Asian gangs in Las Vegas also are staying awayfrom street-level crack-cocaine sales controlled black gangs. Instead, theyspecializein cred- ular telephone user's code wh Utah Resources for Parents of Gang Kids n sell those codes to others program their phones so the unsuspecting victim is billed Atkinson says cellular cloning gangs, or offer other related Salt Lake Area Gang Pro- And it's gone in a day He does not think gang life ever will pay off. Still, he struggles withgiving it up. It’s always going to be in me ith Force, but it will alwaysbein myheart Jordan trict’s program: 567- 264) inst Violence @ Mobilize Against Gang Vi- Robbing conveniencestores and At somepoint I've got to leave. program: 596-9081 @ Count tMMeIn, Granite School District's program: 268- ject: 799- ste stereos netted him. at most, $100 at a time. he says it-eard fraud, burglaries, extor- Here are phone numbersof help get your child away from services he never has tion and, morerecently, cellular; telephanes bars Gang members agencies that may be able to olence In Communities (MAG- mentary’s pro- IC) was started in 1990 by four motherssickened by murders. drive-by shootings and beatings. The number for the West Valley City group is 1-800-9862442 @ Colors of Success, Salt Lake City School District's 180. e County Division of Substance Abuse Services: 9. che County School District’s Mountain Crest Gang Prevention Program: 2456093, to 8,500 in 1995. In terms of size, Latino gangs are Salt Lake Valley’s largest with 1,400 members, whites are second with 800, Pacific Islanders arethird with 338, blacks fourth TG)f NES Pee with 2! ians arefifth with 245 and a small contingent of American Indiansis sixth, “These are kids who feel like social outcasts,” adds AlanCall, a WestValleyCitypolice detective who gathers intelligenceonstreet gangs. “They want girls, they want cars, they want status. And out of frustration they form their little group.” Belonging: Consider the Oriental Posse. Although manyof its members have grown up attend- ing Utah schools, watching Holly- wood movies and following pro sports, theydo not feel a part of America. Their sense of belonging comes fromeachother. “Oriental Posse,” Hongphakdy says, “is like our flag, our own country we're living in Leaders of the valley's Laotian community want to turn gang members’ angerandisolation into a Source of pride. Xay Phengphong, a Laotian poet who left his country when the communist regime began censoring his writings, believes teaching gang members their native language will help themfeel better about them- NO PRICE BEATS A GOING OUT OF BUSINESS SALE PRICE! LOST OUR LEASE! FORCED TO RE-LOCATE! EVEN DEEPER PRICE CUTS! > HURRY! HURRY! YOUR CHANCE TO SAVE HUNDREDS, EVEN THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS BEFORE OUR MIDVALE STORE CLOSES FOREVER! > LAYTON LEATHER WORKSIS ENTERING ITS FINAL DAYS AND WILL SOON CLOSE! DON’T WAIT! selves, “This will help solve the gang problem,’ Phengphong says. “They can have a sense of their own identity.” AddsKing Siharath, an ex-Laotian soldier who fought against the communists before coming to Utah: “We wantto teach the Laotian kids to be good.” Another idea gaining momen- tum is an after-school Laotian soccer league. Money — or the lack of it — is hindering both pro- jects. ‘Thatis rot necessarily the fault of the community, however. Most Laotians are relatively fresh im- migrants and not yet established in-Utah's business community, so they must work two jobs to pro- vide for their families Bounthay and Ait Enda Hong- phakdy work on an assembly line making denture cream in South Jordan. They also have part-time jobs. The family's four children afe well-fed and properly clothed, but the Hongphakdys are frustrated that they have not had more time to spend with their wayward son. Police, probation officers and judges know Ai Hongphakdy The Ultimate in luxurious style and comfort! Compare at $2599 BOTH PIECES JUST... COLOSSAL LEATHER LIVING ROOM SELL-OUT! well. Since age 11, Hongphakdy has spent 546 days in state-run community placement popes atid 17 days in a group home. SaysDet. Call: “It would be interesting to see what they (Orien- tal Posse members] could become ifthey had an equal chance.” “All for One: All things are equal in the enterprising gang economy. Networking is para- mount, and Oriental Posse members have developed that skill. They haveties to Laotian gangsin Las Vegas, San Diego, Los Ange- les and Phoenix. M Las Vegas’ Laotian gang Horny Boys provided Vongpachan “Mac” Piansiaksone, an Oriental Posse member whokilled a rifal in 1994, a crash pad when he fled from West Valley police. Whilein hidingthere, healso sold th Tec-9 semiautomaticpistol he in the slaying. San Diego's Tiny Oriental Cfips and Oriental Killer Boys e@me to Utah whentheyget into trouble with the law; Orientai Pésse members often go to San Djego and have been suspectedof carrying out drive-by there while hanging out with the LARGE VARIETY f DESIGNER / LAMPS \ FOR $39 UNBELIEVABLE! $129 VALUE 5X8 size _ two gangs. Mi Hongphakdy and his older brother Apollo lived in Los Angele$ before moving to Utah and polige say they have ties to gangs ALL LEATHER SECTIONAL =*88s CONTEMPORA RY ‘A, WEDGE, 1 ARM LOVESEA’ $4 588 there. Phoenix police Det. Alex Femibnia, an Asian-gang investigatar, says boom towns, like Phoenix, Las Vegas and Salt Lake City, abe targets for Asian gangs. ‘The specialty of Asian gangs has been the home-invasion robbéry. Victimsof these crimes say gangsters hold babies above pots of boiling water, or molest girls — ile their fathers, bound with dettape, sit helpless. Some gangsters play Russian roulette with victims. {The scaretactics are used to ext@t more money — and persuade vielims not to talk to police. Ori ental — members byae about é a: Over 100 to Sell COMPARE AT $399 1 ARM AVAILABLE IN TEAL & CREAM HURRY! WON'T LAST LONG! FIRST COME, FIRST SOLD! SUN. 10 to 6 @ MON-SAT 10 to 9 HURRY! SAVE HUGE! AT TWO CONVENIENT LOCATIONS! uae BaneLkn ETE AL eer) or “LEATHER EVERYWHERE YOU SIT AND TOUCH N 3Hae Oe} BRING YOUR TRUCK, TRAILER OR VAN AND DRIVE HOME UTAH’S BEST VALUES! TERMS OF SALE .Py neytse eea eee Ot eaeeeeee Bolt @ PRICES OQ NOT INCLUDE DELIVERY CHARGES RS Senea een Geese aese. 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