Gangs Reportedly Growing in Mountain State - WVNS-TV - WVNSTV.com: "linked 24 gangs to West Virginia. That includes white supremacy groups, outlaw motorcycle gangs, and perhaps the most dangerous of the group: street gangs. Detective Jim Sizemore, with the Fayette County Sheriff’s Department, says it’s a problem that must be stopped before it grows.
“What we’re seeing is just the tip of the iceberg,” said Sizemore. 'We’ve got a presence of gangs right her in the southern part of our state.”
Some of the gangs, found in our state, stem from Kanawha County. Gangs have set up shop in Charleston and also in the surrounding areas. Undercover police officers say that gangs don’t need to live in the city to operate. In some instances they’ll commute from outlying communities.
One undercover officer with the Charleston Police Department told us they’ve dealt with a slew of street gangs including Bloods, Crips and the Folk Nation out of Chicago. Lately they’ve seen a lot of action from what they call hybrid gangs.
“A lot of times the New York guys, or the Detroit, Columbus guys, they will come in and maybe one or two guys will try to set up a gang here,” said one of the undercover police officers we interviewed.
Hybrid gangs are often created by out-of-towners. Sometimes they also learn the trade through pop culture like music videos, or the internet. Often times hybrid gangs are focused on money, and have less hardcore affiliations with a larger group. In other words, Bloods and Crips will sometimes work together when it’s profitable."
“What we’re seeing is just the tip of the iceberg,” said Sizemore. 'We’ve got a presence of gangs right her in the southern part of our state.”
Some of the gangs, found in our state, stem from Kanawha County. Gangs have set up shop in Charleston and also in the surrounding areas. Undercover police officers say that gangs don’t need to live in the city to operate. In some instances they’ll commute from outlying communities.
One undercover officer with the Charleston Police Department told us they’ve dealt with a slew of street gangs including Bloods, Crips and the Folk Nation out of Chicago. Lately they’ve seen a lot of action from what they call hybrid gangs.
“A lot of times the New York guys, or the Detroit, Columbus guys, they will come in and maybe one or two guys will try to set up a gang here,” said one of the undercover police officers we interviewed.
Hybrid gangs are often created by out-of-towners. Sometimes they also learn the trade through pop culture like music videos, or the internet. Often times hybrid gangs are focused on money, and have less hardcore affiliations with a larger group. In other words, Bloods and Crips will sometimes work together when it’s profitable."
