By Mark Mitchell
Are gang members plaguing your community with violence? Are you tired of these violent criminals being released from jail so fast they beat you back to your jurisdiction? If this sounds familiar, then I believe seeking other methods, changing our tactics and adopting a new mindset will help us remove these violent criminals from our communities.
Whether you’re a new investigator or a seasoned detective, here are a few key tips to help combat gang activity in your area and increase the chances of a successful prosecution.
Identify the problem
As you develop as a gang investigator, you’ll begin to understand how gangs commit crimes to advance their organization. It’s important to recognize that arresting a single gang member doesn’t necessarily stop the activity. If that individual is connected to a nationally affiliated gang, others may be sent to your jurisdiction to maintain control. That’s why identifying the scope of the problem is critical to determining your investigative approach.
In the planning and intelligence-gathering phase, assess whether you’re dealing with a neighborhood-based gang or a nationally affiliated organization. This distinction will shape your tactics. Local gangs may be disrupted with short-term strategies like jump-outs, probation sweeps and street-level narcotics buys. But national gangs often require long-term, more complex operations such as wiretaps, prison searches or undercover work. If your state lacks a racketeering statute, a federal RICO case may be an option.
For those unfamiliar, RICO stands for Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations. In short, certain state offenses — typically violent crimes and narcotics sales — can be used as predicate acts in a RICO indictment. When combined with federal violations like drug trafficking, wire fraud or prostitution, these acts can establish a pattern of racketeering. To bring a successful case, you must prove both the existence of the gang and that the crimes were committed in furtherance of that organization.
That’s a simplified overview, but you get the idea. RICO cases are not easy. They involve multiple moving parts and require coordination across local, state and federal levels, including buy-in from the U.S. Attorney’s Office. This is where collaboration becomes essential. If you’re willing to take on the challenge, RICO can be a powerful tool to bring down offenders who have repeatedly avoided prosecution.
One of the best examples I’ve seen was during my time on the FBI’s Safe Streets Task Force. Operation Blood Pressure targeted local gang members responsible for multiple armed home invasions in our area. These cases had previously been handled at the state level but resulted in dismissals or light pleas. By using RICO, we were able to combine those crimes into a federal case, leading to convictions. Three of the gang members received life sentences and two others got over 20 years in prison.
If you pursue a long-term RICO strategy, it’s important to brief your command staff early and explain the plan. Your department may face pressure to make quick arrests due to community violence. Communicating your long-term goals helps avoid conflicts — like being forced to arrest a target early after investing months in a wiretap affidavit.
Build a structured plan before going proactive
Long-term investigations require clear planning to be successful. One system I use — adapted from the FBI during my time as a Task Force Officer — breaks the investigation into five phases:
- Intelligence gathering
- Subject analysis
- Proof of racketeering
- Investigative cycle
- Prosecution
Start by identifying your targets and reviewing their criminal history. Determine whether any prior offenses qualify as RICO predicates. Even if a case was dropped, it may still count as a predicate act in a federal RICO prosecution.
Next, work on developing a confidential source who can provide insight into the gang’s structure and hierarchy. Local inmates can be a good starting point, but be mindful of their current status — only active members can provide up-to-date intelligence. Former members may only offer historical context, which may not help with current operations.
Gathering this information up front allows you to prioritize your targets. If someone already has one predicate offense, you may only need one more overt act to meet the RICO threshold. A well-developed plan will ensure you meet the government’s evidentiary standards and strengthen your case.
Stay organized to avoid critical missteps
If you’re pursuing predicate crimes, you’ll need complete and well-documented evidence to support your case. Gather all reports, photos, videos and related material before you begin proactive operations. Once an investigation is in motion, events unfold quickly, and disorganization can result in lost evidence or forgotten incidents — causing unnecessary delays or jeopardizing the case during prosecution and discovery.
Assigning clear roles during the planning phase also helps maintain order. For example, designating an administrative agent to handle surveillance coordination can allow the lead investigator to focus on drafting wiretaps and search warrants. Efficient role distribution keeps the case moving and prevents operational bottlenecks.
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Expand your skill set beyond gang ID
Over my 17-year career, I’ve taken many gang-related courses. Most focused on gang identification — how to recognize different groups and their symbols — but few covered investigative techniques or relevant criminal statutes. While it’s important to know what a gang looks like, it’s just as critical to understand how to investigate the crimes they commit.
In Florida, for example, simply being in a gang isn’t illegal. It’s the criminal acts committed in furtherance of that gang that matter—and gangs commit all kinds of crimes.
Take every training opportunity your agency offers, but don’t limit yourself to gang ID courses. Broaden your knowledge with classes on investigations, narcotics, money laundering, homicide, violent crime, fraud and sex trafficking. The more types of crimes you can effectively investigate, the more valuable you’ll be in targeting gang activity.
Use unconventional tactics to disrupt operations
One of the most effective ways I’ve found to gather fresh intelligence on a gang is through prison searches. While gang members on the street store most of their information on smartphones, incarcerated members often still rely on handwritten notes. These can include gang rules, communications and contact info for members on the outside. Accessing that intelligence early in a long-term investigation can give you a significant advantage.
In one case, we coordinated a simultaneous prison search targeting every gang member identified during the investigation — 49 inmates across 28 facilities in Florida and Georgia. The searches uncovered valuable intelligence, narcotics, contraband phones and effectively disrupted the gang’s daily operations. When that communication pipeline is cut, gang members often scramble and make mistakes — mistakes you can exploit to strengthen your case.
Convenience stores are another common gang hub. While not always directly involved, many allow gang activity to continue unchecked — enabling drug sales outside or letting gang members stash narcotics inside when officers approach. If your investigation includes undercover buys or confidential source purchases at these locations, consider bringing in regulatory agencies during the takedown phase.
In Florida, EBT trafficking is rampant in many convenience stores. In addition to criminal charges, administrative penalties and fines can be used to shut these stores down. Combine that with underage alcohol or tobacco sales violations, and you can effectively close the location — removing a key gathering point for gang activity.
Creative strategies like these can turn basic disruptions into lasting dismantlement of gang operations.
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Build strong partnerships to strengthen your case
Meet as many people in the profession as you can. The more connections you make, the faster you can access information. Criminal activity crosses jurisdictional lines, so you’ll need reliable contacts — whether in corrections, federal agencies, state prosecution or the U.S. Attorney’s Office. You won’t know everything about every gang, but someone in your network might. Leveraging those relationships is critical to success.
One of the most important connections you can build is with your local prosecutors. Unfortunately, some officers take an “us vs. them” approach when working with attorneys. That mindset hurts cases. Arresting someone is only part of the job — achieving a successful prosecution is the goal. If we don’t work closely with prosecutors, we risk putting dangerous offenders right back on the street.
Talk to prosecutors about what they need. If a case is declined, find out why. Ask what would make it stronger next time. Involve them early—bring them into the investigation. When someone has invested time in a case, they’re more likely to stay committed to seeing it through.
Criminals don’t operate in a vacuum. If you’ve made a street-level narcotics buy and another agency is about to launch a wiretap on the same suspect, hold your charges and coordinate. Wiretap evidence may carry heavier penalties, and collaboration could lead to a more powerful joint case. Share your intelligence. Maybe your narcotics case supports their RICO build — or vice versa.
Ego can ruin investigations. I’ve seen agencies rush to make arrests for credit, only to see the case fall apart. This job isn’t about individual recognition — it’s about protecting victims and making our communities safer. That sometimes means stepping back and supporting your partners so a larger case can succeed.
At the end of the day, it doesn’t matter whose name is on the arrest report. What matters is getting violent offenders off the street and keeping them there. The only way to do that consistently is through cooperation and shared goals.
About the author
Mark Mitchell is a 17-year law enforcement veteran currently assigned to the Patrol Division of the Hollywood (Florida) Police Department. Throughout his career, he has been assigned to various units including Drug Task Force, Interdiction, Street Crimes, Field Training, Vice, Intelligence and Narcotics. His last assignment was as a Task Force Officer on the FBI’s Safe Streets Task Force.
Ofc. Mitchell has been investigating complex cases involving gang activity for 15 years. His investigative experience involves conducting investigations as both an investigator and Undercover Officer for Gangs, Narcotics, Homicide, Domestic Terrorism, Public Corruption, Counter-Intelligence, Organized Crime, Cyber-Crimes, Internet Crimes Against Children, Art Fraud, Violent Crime and White Collar Crime cases. He was awarded Florida Gang Investigator of the Year by the Florida Gang Investigators Association and Task Force Officer of the Year by the FBI.
He has provided instruction on gangs to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, local Public Safety Academies, and for the Florida, South Carolina and North Carolina Gang Investigator Associations. He has also testified as a gang expert in the 17th Judicial Circuit of the State of Florida. Contact him at mmitch3505@gmail.com.
