Member of 10th Street Gang Pleads Guilty to Racketeering and Admits Murdering Rival Gang Member

BUFFALO—U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that Saul Santana, 24, of Buffalo, New York, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Richard J. Arcara to Racketeering Influenced Corrupt Organizations or RICO. The charge carries a maximum penalty of life in prison, a fine of $250,000, or both.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph M. Tripi, who is handling the case, stated that between 2000 and 2010, Saul Santana was a member of the 10th Street Gang, a criminal enterprise engaged in a wide variety of criminal activity. Among other activities, members of the gang allegedly sold controlled substances, including cocaine and marijuana on the West Side of Buffalo, and committed acts of violence, including murder, against rival gang members and rival drug dealers.

As a part of his guilty plea agreement, Santana specifically admitted that he sold cocaine and crack cocaine in Buffalo. Santana further acknowledged murdering rival gang member Anthony Colon, a/k/a Ace, on June 26, 2009 in retaliation for an earlier incident committed by the victim against a fellow gang member. The defendant committed the June 26, 2009 murder by shooting the victim multiple times in the back in broad daylight.

“This office, along with our federal, state, and local law enforcement partners, are committed to ridding the streets of our community of violent gang activity,” said U.S. Attorney Hochul. “As this case demonstrates, criminal organizations of this type are often responsible for a tremendous amount of crime in a given area, including drug dealing, violence, and murder. While local authorities will continue to be primarily responsible for patrol and enforcement, this office will not hesitate to use powerful federal statutes, such as RICO, to help these agencies where the circumstances warrant.”

The pleas are the culmination of an investigation on the part of investigators of the New York State Police, under the direction of Major Christopher Cummings; the Buffalo Police Department, under the direction of Commission Daniel Derenda; and Special Agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Christopher M. Piehota.

Sentencing is scheduled for July 2, 2012 at 12:30 p.m. EDT in Buffalo, New York before Judge Arcara.