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Tattoos are an excellent tool for law enforcement and corrections officers to use to identify known or suspected gang members. This gallery includes examples of tattoos worn by predominanly Latino gangs such as the Mexican Mafia, MS-13, and the Latin Kings. The number "13" is used because M (or La Eme) is the thirteenth letter of the alphabet and is used to signify the Mexican Mafia, which uses Sureños—gangs that swear allegiance to the Mexican Mafia—to carry out its orders from prison.
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Gang members are usually decorated with the marking of their sets, super-gangs, and affiliated prison gangs. Their bodies are also often marked with tattoos that are generic prison symbols that you will find on just about any inmate. The following slide show is a quick look at some tattoos used by some predominately African-American gangs with origins in California.
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Using an operational tattoo shop as a business front, the Richmond County, Ga., Sheriff’s Office Gang Task Force conducted undercover investigations to reduce gun sales by local street gangs.
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One afternoon about five years ago, I was summoned from my desk at the detective division of a major Southern California urban sheriff's department and asked to meet one of the staff drill instructors at our academy gymnasium.
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Take a close look at the recent media coverage of the rioting in France, and you will see that those young French men of Arab and African descent are wearing identifying tattoos.
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Under the new policy, officers with "excessive" body art, including tattoos and piercings, will have to cover up while on duty.
Read More →When citizens hear the word "gang," they usually conjure up stereotypical images of Hispanic, Asian, black or white thugs roaming inner-city streets. But most cops working the gang detail understand that looks can be deceiving.
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