Four Members Of Tulsa '107 Hoover Crips' Gang Indicted

A federal grand jury indicted four known Tulsa gang members for trafficking large amounts of crack cocaine Thursday.

The men are members of the "107 Hoover Crips" street gang. And the four men are no strangers to Justice Department.

Law enforcement agencies are hoping this will finally be the thing that keeps these men off the street.

Lorell Battle, his cousin Paul Battle, Thomas Jackson and Gaywone Blades are all charged with conspiring to distribute crack cocaine.

According to the indictment, they would use apartments near 61st and Peoria as "crack houses." The gang members had an extensive operation.

4/4/2013 Related Story: Police Investigate Murder Of Gang Member, Federal Witness In Bank Robberies

Two (Lorell Battle & Gaywone Blades) are also charged with using guns while trafficking.

"The fact that they tend to back up their narcotic sales with violence, these are the type of people that you have to get off the street," said U.S. Attorney Danny Williams. "You have to get them off the street for the rest of their lives."

The men are Hoover Crips gang members and have a lengthy criminal history with Tulsa Police.

In April, another crips member, Anthony Campbell, was shot to death while taking his trash can back to his house. After that murder, Lorell and Blades were arrested, but for charges not related to the homicide.

"They're involved in anything you can think of--everything from drug dealing, robberies, burglaries, stolen cars, homicides, shooting with intent to kill," said Sgt. Sean Larkin, of Tulsa Police's Gang Unit.

Three of them have also served prison time for prior drug convictions.

"That's what piqued our interest. These people have been on our radar. They go to the penitentiary, get out and continue to do the same things that they were doing before," Williams said.

Veteran TPD Sergeant Larkin said he's been chasing Lorell since he started working with the department. In fact, Lorell was once charged with murder, but it was dismissed when a witness failed to show up to court.

"To finally see him get his due date in court on something I think is a really solid case, I'm really glad to see it," Larkin said.

All four men are being held without bond.

The U.S. attorney says his office will be extremely aggressive in their prosecutions and they will continue to crack down on this type of criminal activity.