14 people indicted in organized crime ring
HOUSTON (FOX 26) - Fourteen people have been indicted following a joint investigation into an organized crime ring that affected the Houston area for months. The crimes included a daytime raid of a bank vault and the robbery of a jewelry store in the Houston Galleria district that accounted for more than $1 million in merchandise.
“We are dismantling a violent, high-dollar criminal organization that operates as the new mob,” said Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg in a statement released on Friday. “Members of organized criminal rings like this do more damage together than as individuals.”
Ten defendants were arrested and the other four people remain at large as of Friday.
In addition to the bank and jewelry store robberies, the defendants are accused of having their hand in nine other incidents at Houston-area pawn shops.
Each of the people charged face no less than 15 years with a maximum sentence of life in state prison if convicted. The investigation was a joint effort by the Harris County District Attorney’s Office Special Crimes Division, the Houston Police Department Robbery Division and the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
"Dismantling an organization responsible for scores of violent crimes not only makes our community safer, it puts everyone on notice that this violence will not be left unchallenged in Houston and the surrounding cities," said ATF Houston Division Special Agent in Charge Fred Milanowski.
The fugitives include the following men:
- Kendrick Miller, 27, who has a cross and tear drop tattooed near his left eye.
- Kenneth Glenn, 22, has a tattoo on his right check of a cross and script writing under each eye.
- Avery Johnson, 24, has a crown tattooed on the right side of his forehead and cursive writing above and below each eye.
- Cotrell Pruitt, 28, has a tattoo of a bull with horns above his nose and between his eyes.
The following men and woman were arrested:
- Devan Arterberry, 25
- Jamarcus Jamal Cain 26, also known as Xavier
- Edison Ibeabuchi, 20
- Tevin McCray, 24
- Jeremy Miller,25
- Mary Mosley, 23
- Wiley Smith, 31
- Matthew Stamps, 31
- Joshua Williams, 27
- Darrell Woods, 34
Anyone with information about the fugitives is encouraged to contact the Harris County District Attorney’s Office by phone at 713-274-5588, or the Houston Police Department Robbery Division at 713-308-0700 or Crime Stoppers of Houston at 713-222-TIPS.