Two Aryan Brotherhood of Texas Gang Members Plead Guilty to Racketeering Charges

WASHINGTON—Two members of the Aryan Brotherhood of Texas (ABT) prison-based gang pleaded guilty today in federal court to racketeering aggravated assault in the 2008 beating of a gang prospect in Tomball, Texas, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney José Angel Moreno for the Southern District of Texas.

Shane Everett Dallmeyer, 30, aka “Lock Jaw,” and Michael Raymond Burkett, 33, aka “Redneck,” each pleaded guilty today to one count of committing violent crimes in aid of racketeering activity in Houston before Senior U.S. District Judge Ewing Werlein Jr.

According to the guilty pleas, Dallmeyer and Burkett were members of ABT, a powerful race-based, state-wide organization that operates inside and outside of state and federal prisons throughout Texas and the United States. The ABT was established in the early 1980s within the Texas prison system. The ABT modeled itself after and adopted many of the precepts and writings of the Aryan Brotherhood, a California-based prison gang that was formed in the California prison system during the 1960s. According to court filings, the ABT was primarily concerned with the protection of white inmates and white supremacy/separatism. Over time, however, the ABT has expanded its criminal enterprise to include illegal activities for profit.

According to information presented in court, the ABT enforces its rules and promotes discipline among its members, prospects and associates through murder, attempted murder, conspiracy to murder, assault, robbery, and threats against those who violate the rules or pose a threat to the enterprise. Members, and oftentimes associates, are required to follow the orders of higher-ranking members, often referred to as “direct orders.”

According to the guilty pleas, Dallmeyer and Burkett participated in the beating of an ABT prospect member at the home of another ABT gang member in Tomball, Texas, on Sept. 22, 2008. The ABT prospect, who sustained serious bodily injury, was beaten by ABT gang members because he allegedly violated certain ABT rules of conduct.

On April 29, 2011, ABT gang member Stephen Kyle Knebel, 33, aka “Lil Evil,” pleaded guilty to racketeering aggravated assault. Fellow gang member, Bobby Dan Teets, 45, aka “Bull,” pleaded guilty to the same charge in December 2010.

Dallmeyer, Burkett, Knebel and Teets all face a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. Sentencing for Dallmeyer and Burkett is scheduled for Aug. 12, 2011. Sentencing for Teets is scheduled for July 25, 2011, and sentencing for Knebel is scheduled for July 29, 2011.

This case is being investigated by a multi-agency task force consisting of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives; the Drug Enforcement Administration; the FBI; the U.S. Marshals Service; the Texas Rangers; the Texas Department of Public Safety; the Montgomery County, Texas, Precinct 4 Constable’s Office; the Montgomery County, Texas, Sheriff’s Department; the Houston Police Department-Gang Division; and the Harris County, Texas Sheriff’s Office.

The case is being prosecuted by David Karpel of the Criminal Division’s Organized Crime and Gang Section and Jay Hileman of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Texas.