RICO case ensnared ex-leader of Idaho prison gang Aryan Knights. He just pleaded guilty
The former leader of the Aryan Knights prison gang in Idaho has pleaded guilty to assault with a dangerous weapon and to conspiracy, under what’s known as the RICO statute, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Idaho.
The Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organization Act’s intended goal was to combat organized crime, according to the United States Department of Justice, but it has been useful in a variety of cases since its implementation in 1970.
James Ramsey, 43, who led the white supremacist prison gang in 2015-16, was the last of 10 people targeted in a RICO case that began in 2019 to plead guilty. That case hinged on a racketeering conspiracy involving the smuggling and distribution of methamphetamine in prison, and the violence the gang perpetrated, according to a news release.
“The defendant was a member of an enterprise called the ‘Aryan Knights’ (AK) since at least 2007,” the release said. “It was founded to organize criminal activity for a select group of white inmates within IDOC custody.”
Of the 10 defendants, eight have been sentenced, with their sentences ranging from 28 months to life in federal prison, according to the release. Ramsey will be sentenced in October.
The Aryan Knights are primarily based in the Gem State, according to the Anti-Defamation League. The group was founded in the 1990s, according to prior Statesman reporting, and has more than 100 members.
Police have said that Skylar Meade and Nicholas Umphenour, who have been charged in the ambush of IDOC officers so Meade could escape while getting treatment at a Boise hospital earlier this year, are members of the Aryan Knights.
