October 25, 2011 10:08pm4 Comments
Gang members have been signing up with the United States Armed Forces, posing a “significant criminal threat” to law enforcement, according to a report by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
“Gang infiltration of the military continues to pose a significant criminal threat, as members of at least 53 gangs have been identified on both domestic and international military installations,” the report says, resulting in American gang graffiti in Iraq, among other things.
Every branch of the military contains some gang members, the FBI reported, but most gang members join the Army, the Army Reserves, and the U.S. National Guard. And gang member enlistment doesn’t require a sinister intention. “Many street gang members join the military to escape the gang lifestyle,” says the FBI, while others join at the behest of a court “as an alternative to incarceration.”
But the military sometimes proves a bad environment for gang members, who “often revert back to their gang associations once they encounter other gang members in the military.”
Numerous U.S. gangs, according to the report, “advise members without criminal records to join the military for necessary weapons and combat training.” Military deployments, in the event, end up placing gang members alongside other members of the armed forces on active duty.
Gang membership in the U.S. military has resulted in “incidents of weapons theft and trafficking,” the FBI warns, which “may have a negative impact on public safety or pose a threat to law enforcement officials.”
You can see a list of gangs affiliated with branches of the military below. For reference, OMG stands for “Outlaw Motorcycle Gang.”
Welcome to the all volunteer army….
It makes sense. According to urban legend around California, the Bloods were founded by returning Black Vietnam Veterans who banded together to defend their neighborhood against invading Crips.
The Outlaw Motorcycle gangs (Hells Angels, Mongols, etc) all supposedly have their roots from returning World War 2 veterans who missed the adrenaline high of combat.
In addition to street gangs, White supremacists groups are also heavily infiltrated into the military. This goes back to the KKK which was founded by disenchanted Confederate war veterans.
It all acts as a sort of finishing school (kinda like how prison is said to be a graduate school for criminals). They learn proper gun control and coordination and logistics. After their service is over they bring their new organizational knowledge back to their organizations back home.