 | Finland has banned the United Brotherhood (UB) and affiliate Bad Union. The ban means the gangs are forbidden to use gang colours, to maintain clubhouses or to recruit new members. |
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 | Characterized as Finland's most dangerous gang, the UB join the Hells Angels, who were banned from Finland in 2019. |
 | The cutters Munro and Bertholf intercepted three smuggling boats in the Eastern Pacific Ocean seizing more than 9,000 pounds of cocaine with an estimated value of more than $150m. |
 | A fishing vessel yielded 1,300 pounds of cocaine in a concealed compartment. A low-profile smuggling boat had more than 3,400 pounds of cocaine. |
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 | Drug kingpin and killer John Bass, 51, was freed from a Pennsylvania prison after 22 years on compassionate grounds in January. He is obese and cited the potential of catching the coronavirus. A judge noted his “horrific crimes,” but ruled he was worthy of a “well-earned second chance”. Bass ran a brutal drug ring in Detroit and personally tortured and killed his rivals. Bass was serving two life sentences for murder and drugs. He had been eligible for the federal death penalty. |
| Prosecutors objected to his release pointing out that Bass continued to run his ring from jail and had “not aged out of his ability to harm” others. “He’s only 51 years old – eight years older than one of the starting quarterbacks in this year’s Super Bowl." Bass was returned to jail. |
| The Nazi Low Riders (NLR) originated in the 1970s inside a California Youth Authority facility. It is most closely associated with the Aryan Brotherhood. |
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| Aaron (Joseph) Piccinetti pled guilty in August to two drug trafficking counts that were part of Project Skylark – a large bust that targeted the HA. He was about to be sentenced when he claimed a toxicology report proves he was bent when he admited his guilt, plus he claimed he needed a new lawyer. It is his second delay and it did not amuse the judge. “This has been going on for too long, Mr. Piccinetti,” he said. |
 | A Canadian trucker was arrested and 240 pounds of cocaine was seized by U.S. Customs in Sweetgrass, Montana. In December, Canada Border Service Agency stopped a truck carrying produce at the Coutts Port of Entry. Agents seized a record-setting 228 kg of meth. |  The driver, a resident of Calgary, was arrested. He appears in court on drug trafficking charges this month. |
 | Michel Langlois was rejected for early release from prison after the parole board found he didn't show the necessary “goodwill” or “commitment not to reoffend." Langlois, 74, is serving a four-year sentence for drug trafficking. Langlois was a founding member of the Angels’ Montreal chapter in 1977 and is described as a 'decision maker'. |
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 | U.S. Customs and Border Protection in Cincinnati have landed 50 shipments containing 433 pounds of green cocaine since October. The green powder is processed into the more commonly known white form of cocaine. The shipments were packaged to appear like matcha or moringa powder, both popular nutritional supplements. |
| A Surrey cop was caught in a vehicle with known gangsters in late January. The unnamed cop has been suspended. He is said to be 'probationary' with 1 year of experience. He is from Ontario. Charges are expected but cops say that could take months even though it is a 'high priority' for them. In the interim "the individual has no access to any policing information." |
| Federal prosecutors in Brooklyn have hit MS-13’s “board of directors” with terror charges — accusing the leaders of ordering scores of murders. The men make up the “Ranfla Nacional” — the gang’s ruling body.
The “Twelve Apostles of the Devil” are the upper echelon of MS-13. The vicious gang is responsible for a huge number of mutilated bodies. The machete is the preferred tool of choice. |
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