Another high-ranking Latin King leader enters deal with prosecutors

HAMMOND | One week after his predecessor entered into a plea agreement with the government, a high-ranking Latin King leader has followed suit in federal court.

Ivan "Captain Kirk" Quiroz, 30, of Posen, Ill., changed his plea to guilty Thursday for one count of conspiracy to participate in racketeering activity, two counts of murder in the aid of racketeering, one count of conspiracy to possess and distribute more than 150 kilograms of cocaine and 1,000 kilograms of marijuana, and two gun-related counts tied to the murder and drug charges. 

He faces two mandatory life sentences for the murders, but he could receive less time if prosecutors deem his cooperation helpful and a judge grants their request for a downward departure.

The plea comes seven days after Alexandar "Pacman" Vargas, a 34-year-old Highland resident, changed his plea to similar charges. The father of five was a Regional Inca, controlling hundreds of Latin King "soldiers" in the Chicagoland area and consulting with the gang's Texas branch.

But in 2010, Vargas stepped down, said U.S. Department of Justice trial attorney Joseph Cooley during Thursday's hearing.

Quiroz stepped in as Regional Inca of the Southeast Region, which includes Chicago's South and East sides, Hammond, East Chicago, Harvey and Chicago Heights.

"I've been an active member and took a leadership role within the membership," Quiroz told Judge Rudy Lozano.

The Latin King prosecution is one of Chicagoland's largest racketeering gang prosecutions. It started in 2010 with a handful of defendants and within a year ballooned to net almost two dozen alleged Latin King members and their associates - including two former Chicago police officers - for crimes dating back to 1989.

Quiroz said he joined the gang in 1997, and over the years worked his way up the ranks from disciplining people as a chapter enforcer to being a chairman of the Southeast Region.

And in 2007, Quiroz helped plan and execute the Griffith Sopranos Lounge murders, Cooley said. The hit came after Vargas' brother had recently been murdered by those Vargas believed were rival Latin Dragon gang members.

"As a result, the hostility between the Latin Kings and the Latin Dragons escalated," Cooley said.

When the Latin Kings heard alleged Latin Dragon leadership would be at Sopranos for a party, they seized the opportunity for an ambush.

"We planned an attack," Quiroz said. "I was the driver."

He said co-defendants Brandon "Cheddar" Clay, Jason "Creeper" Ortiz, Jose "Speedy" Zambrano, and Jermaine "J-Dub" Ellis were with him that night. After alleged Latin Dragons James "Jim Bob" Walsh and Gonzalo "Chalo" Diaz were shot, Quiroz led police on a high-speed chase that ended in a foot pursuit.

Ellis and Zambrano changed their pleas to guilty in 2010. Clay's attorney, Clark Holesinger, did not respond to requests for comment, while Ortiz's attorney, Gojko Kasich, said Quiroz's mention was no surprise after the claims made in the case's three superseding indictments and at Ellis' and Zambrano's change of plea hearings.

Quiroz also supplied an AK-47 for that double homicide, the same firearm Cooley said was used to murder Isaiah Cintron in the parking lot of a Whiting tavern a month earlier. Cintron had recently been honorably discharged from the Marines, Cooley said.

Because Quiroz is a legal U.S. resident but not a citizen, he could face deportation to his native Mexico because of the convictions. And though it was not written in the plea agreement, Cooley said the government would be recommending Quiroz for witness protection in light of his cooperation.

About a dozen family and friends of Quiroz filled the courtroom for the hearing. One woman closed her eyes and tilted her head toward the ceiling as Quiroz rattled off "guilty" to each of the six counts.

She declined to comment after the hearing.

Quiroz's sentencing is scheduled for April 30, though Lozano said it will likely be moved so that his cooperation in the remaining 16 co-defendants' September 10 trial can be taken into consideration.