Project Wildfire was a nationwide, multi-agency investigation of various transnational criminal gangs in 2015 that resulted in the arrests of 976 individuals, representing 239 different organizations, in 282 cities in the United States mainland and

Puerto Rico ; abbreviated PR), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, is a Government of Puerto Rico, self-governing Caribbean Geography of Puerto Rico, archipelago and island organized as an Territories of the United States, unincorporated territo ...

. Eighty-two firearms, 5.2 kilograms of methamphetamine, 7.8 kilograms of marijuana, 5.6 kilograms of cocaine, 1.5 kilograms of heroin, US$379,399, counterfeit merchandise with a suggested retail price of US$547,534 and five vehicles were also seized. As part of the ongoing

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement The United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE; ) is a Federal law enforcement in the United States, federal law enforcement agency under the United States Department of Homeland Security. ICE's stated mission is to protect the Un ...

(ICE) effort known as Operation Community Shield, Project Wildfire began on February 23, 2015, and concluded on March 31, with most arrests involving members and those affiliated with the

Crips The Crips are a primarily African-American alliance of street gangs that are based in the coastal regions of Southern California. Founded in Los Angeles, California, in 1969, mainly by Raymond Washington and Stanley Williams, the Crips ...

Bloods The Bloods are a primarily African Americans, African American street gang which was founded in Los Angeles, California. The gang is widely known for Crips–Bloods gang war, its rivalry with the Crips. It is identified by the red color worn ...

, and

Sureños ''Sureños'' (; Spanish language, Spanish for ''Southerners'')‍, also known as ''Southern United Raza'', ''Sur 13'' or ''Sureños X3'', are groups of loosely affiliated gangs that pay tribute to the Mexican Mafia while in Incarceration in the U ...

along with a few Puerto Rican gangs and several prison-based gangs. Arrests were made all around the country, with the greatest activity taking place in

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

Detroit Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...

Los Angeles County Los Angeles County, officially the County of Los Angeles and sometimes abbreviated as LA County, is the most populous county in the United States, with 9,663,345 residents estimated in 2023. Its population is greater than that of 40 individua ...

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

and

San Juan, Puerto Rico San Juan ( , ; Spanish for "Saint John the Baptist, John") is the capital city and most populous Municipalities of Puerto Rico, municipality in the Commonwealth (U.S. insular area), Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the ...

Arrests

The following number of arrests, made by

Homeland Security Investigations The United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE; ) is a Federal law enforcement in the United States, federal law enforcement agency under the United States Department of Homeland Security. ICE's stated mission is to protect the Un ...

(HSI) and other participating agencies, were released by ICE: * In

Lubbock, Texas Lubbock ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat of Lubbock County. With a population of 272,086 in 2024, Lubbock is the 10th-most populous city in Texas and the 84th-most populous in the United States. The city is in the ...

, HSI special agents and task force officers arrested 122 known or suspected gang members and associates from the Bloods, Crips, Rolling 60s,

Mexican Mafia The Mexican Mafia (Spanish: ''Mafia Mexicana''), also known as ''La eMe'' (Spanish for "the M"), is a predominantly Mexican American prison gang and criminal organization in the United States. Despite its name, the Mexican Mafia has no origins i ...

, Sureños, West Texas, Raza Unida,

Aryan Brotherhood The Aryan Brotherhood (AB or The Brand) is a neo-Nazi prison gang and an organized crime syndicate that is based in the United States and has an estimated 15,000–20,000 members both inside and outside prisons. The Southern Poverty Law Center ...

White Aryan Resistance White Aryan Resistance (WAR) is a white supremacist and neo-Nazi organization in the United States which was founded and formerly led by former Ku Klux Klan Grand Dragon Tom Metzger. It was based in Warsaw, Indiana, and it was also incorpora ...

, West Side,

Gangster Disciples The Gangster Disciple Nation (often abbreviated as the GD's; formally, GDN or simply Gangster Disciples), also known as Growth & Development, is an African American street and prison gang founded by former rivals David Barksdale and Larry H ...

Peckerwood ''Peckerwood'' is a US racial epithet used against white people, especially poor white, poor rural whites. Originally an ethnic slur, the term has been reclaimed by a subculture related to prison gangs and outlaw motorcycle clubs. The term was in ...

Texas Syndicate The Texas Syndicate () is a mostly Texas-based street and prison gang consisting of predominantly Mexican American membership. The Texas Syndicate, unlike the Mexican Mafia or Nuestra Familia, has been more associated or allied with Mexican immi ...

and West Texas Tango. * In the Detroit area, (HSI) special agents and task force officers arrested 89 gang members and associates with ties to gangs such as the Latin Counts,

Folk Nation The Folk Nation is an alliance of street gangs originating in Chicago, established in 1978. The alliance has since spread throughout the United States, particularly the Midwestern United States. Formation The Folk Nation was formed on November ...

, Sureños and Atherton Terrace. * In Puerto Rico and central Florida, 46 members of the Zorrilla criminal organization were arrested for various charges of manufacturing and distributing narcotics, money laundering and other related criminal activity. * In the Chicago area, HSI special agents arrested 30 gang members and affiliates with ties to the Sureños 13, Latin Kings,

La Raza In Mexico, the Spanish expression ('the people'; literally: 'the race') has historically been used to refer to the mixed-race populations (primarily though not always exclusively in the Western Hemisphere), considered as an ethnic or racia ...

, Conservative Vice Lords, Gangster Disciples, 4 Corner Hustlers,

Maniac Latin Disciples The Maniac Latin Disciples Nation is a Hispanic street gang in Chicago and the largest in the Latino Folks Nation alliance. Originally known as only the Latin Disciples, the gang was founded by Albert "Hitler" Hernandez and other Puerto Rican te ...

and the

Vice Lords The Almighty Vice Lord Nation (Vice Lords for short, abbreviated AVLN) is the second-largest and one of the oldest street and prison gangs in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its total membership is estimated to be between 30,000 and 35,000. It i ...

. * In California's Imperial Valley, HSI special agents arrested 28 individuals, including 10 documented gang members of the Brole, North Side Centro, West Side Centro, South Side Centro and Pilgrim street gangs.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wildfire, Project Aryan Brotherhood Bloods Crips February 2015 in the United States Folk Nation March 2015 in the United States Law enforcement operations of the Mexican drug war Mexican Mafia Battles and operations of the Mexican drug war involving the United States Sureños

Arrests

See also

References