Latest news with #RobertCharles
Fox News
05-08-2025
- Politics
- Fox News
Former State Department narcotics expert says ritzy Boston area is seeing increase in crime because of illegal drug use
Robert Charles, former assistant Sec. of State at the State Department's Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs, said that until Boston leaders wake up and take action against illegal drug use, crime won't go down.
Black America Web
25-07-2025
- Black America Web
The Story Of The Robert Charles Riots In New Orleans
Source: ilbusca / Getty Race riots have stained the fabric of American history, leaving behind tragic stories of violence, terror and resistance. From the New York City Draft Riots of 1863 to the Red Summer of 1919, these uprisings gave white supremacist violence a space to spill from the nation's pores into Black communities already struggling to find their place in a changing America. One lesser-known flashpoint that rarely receives the attention it deserves is the Robert Charles Riots of 1900 in New Orleans—a pivotal moment at the dawn of Jim Crow, marked by individual Black defiance and a white backlash that almost tore a city apart. To understand the chaos that would engulf New Orleans in the summer of 1900, you first have to understand the man at the center of it all: Robert Charles. Robert Charles was a self-educated Black laborer who believed deeply that Black people had a right to defend themselves, so much so that it would eventually cost him his life. Like many other Black people during that period, Charles moved from New Orleans to Mississippi in search of work and a better life. Like much of the South, Mississippi was simmering with racial tension, and Charles' self-defense beliefs would soon collide with the brutal machinery of white supremacy, igniting one of the most violent episodes in New Orleans history. Source: Historical / Getty According to 64 Parishes, on the evening of July 23, 1900, Robert Charles sat on a stoop in a predominantly white neighborhood with his friend Leonard Pierce. Around 11 pm, three white New Orleans police officers—Sgt. Jules C. Aucoin and Officers Joseph D. Cantrelle and August T. Mora—approached and began questioning him. The encounter quickly escalated. After being harassed for a bit, Charles decided to stand up from the stoop when he was struck in the head with a baton by one of the officers. Reacting to the sudden violence and fearing for his life, Charles pulled out a firearm and exchanged shots with officer Mora. Both men received injuries, but Charles was able to flee and escape police custody. Police later used Pierce to track Charles to a nearby residence—but the bloodshed was far from over. From 64 Parishes: Yet Charles, likely aware of the violent fate that often awaited Black men who killed white men, determined not to give himself over to the police. Charles fired his Winchester rifle at the group of officers as they approached his door. Two officers fell dead. Charles somehow managed to escape the police once again. That day, Robert Charles killed two police officers and wounded another, sparking one of the largest manhunts in the city's history. As police failed to locate him in the hours that followed, white outrage spread like wildfire. By the next day, that rage had taken physical form, leading to hundreds of angry white people mobbing up in front of the residence where Charles had killed officers the night before. On July 24, the crowd turned its anger toward the broader Black community of New Orleans, launching sporadic attacks on Black residents throughout the city By July 25, the violence became more organized. Around 8 p.m., the white mob mobilized at what was then known as Lee Circle and began another coordinated rampage throughout the city, all under the guise of helping police track down Charles. The mob killed three Black people and left six others so badly wounded they had to be July 27, police received an anonymous tip about Charles' location. When officers attempted to storm the apartment on Saratoga Street where he was hiding, Charles opened fire again—killing two more policemen. Word of the shootout spread quickly and the same armed white mob that terrorized the city descended on the building. Charles and the armed mob exchanged gunfire for several hours. According to reports, Charles killed three residents from the mob before police set the building on fire. He was eventually killed trying to flee the burning building, but the mob wasn't finished. After his death, they dragged his lifeless body through the streets, riddling it with bullets and blows—shooting him over thirty times—before authorities transported his remains to the morgue. Before the Robert Charles Riots ended, the white mob also burned down the Thomy Lafon School—one of the most esteemed Black schools in the state—capping four days of racial violence and terror. The Robert Charles Riots are a brutal reminder that justice in America once looked like mob rule— and white vengeance often brought terror to Black communities. When truth is blinded by fear, fear too easily transforms into violence and hate. SEE ALSO: The Ghost Of Willie Earle And The Haunting Of Pickens County Museum The Antebellum Tale Of Black Slave Girl Molly And The Haunting Of Sorrel-Weed House SEE ALSO The Story Of The Robert Charles Riots In New Orleans was originally published on
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Emerging Venezuelan gang 'more violent' than Tren de Aragua targets rural America, expert warns
An emerging Venezuelan gang has the potential to be "more violent" than Tren de Aragua and target rural America, according to an expert. Members of the Venezuelan-based gang have formed the "Anti-Tren" gang, which federal authorities say is made up almost exclusively of former members of Tren de Aragua. In a newly unsealed April federal indictment, prosecutors accused 21 men of running drug and prostitution rings in New York City. According to the indictment, members of Anti-Tren "protect their power and territory through various criminal acts, which includes violence towards members of Tren de Aragua. "Preserving and protecting the power and territory of Anti-Tren and its members and associates through acts involving murder, assault, other acts of violence, and threats of violence, including acts of violence and threats of violence directed at members and associates of Tren de Aragua," the indictment states. Texas Woman Robbed, Pistol-whipped In Ritzy Dallas Area By Illegal Venezuelan Migrants With Gang Ties: Report Members of Anti-Tren are also enriched through illegal smuggling, which includes young Venezuelan women, sex trafficking of young women, drug trafficking and armed robberies, federal officials allege. Read On The Fox News App Robert Charles, assistant secretary of state at the U.S. State Department's Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs from October 2003 to March 2005 and Maine gubernatorial candidate, told Fox News Digital he thinks the Anti-Tren group has the potential to become more violent than Tren de Aragua. "I've read some of the public accounts that suggest that this offshoot group is trying to distinguish itself by being more violent," Charles said. "With MS-13, they had various tests and things that they went through, and there were offshoots there that became more violent than the original group." Charles said gangs like Anti-Tren attempt to dominate an area geographically and one of the ways they accomplish that is through violence and intimidation. 11 Alleged Teen Tren De Aragua Gang Members Attack Nypd Officers: Police "They are also doing violence in an environment which they're taking advantage of people. They're taking advantage of the homeless, they're taking advantage of rural America," Charles said of Anti-Tren. Charles said gangs like Anti-Tren are targeting rural parts of America because that's where they can "maximize their gain" with little risk. "We don't have the infrastructure in a very rural state to put patrols up through the northern part of the state and, frankly, to even keep drugs from coming in and the gangs from coming here," Charles said of his state, Maine. "Criminals are bad guys, but they are not stupid. And so what they look for is they look for opportunities to maximize their gain with the least possible risk." Charles said he thinks the group will be eager to get into fights with Tren de Aragua, which is why authorities need to work fast to quash the group. "I think right now their numbers are relatively modest," Charles said. "If you look away from it, if you pretend that it's not important, if you appease it instead of deterring it, then absolutely it will grow. That's just the nature of crime." The Anti-Tren gang has a presence that expands beyond New York City. In September 2024, a Texas woman was robbed at gunpoint, pistol-whipped and tied up in her Dallas-area home located in the ritzy neighborhood of Bluffview, where the average home value is $880,000, according to Zillow. The robbery happened around 10 p.m. on Sept. 21, 2024, after the woman had just returned home from dinner. The men involved in the incident allegedly targeted the woman in her driveway, forced her into her home, then tied her up at gunpoint, according to records obtained by Fox News. The men involved allegedly threatened to cut her fingers off. Using Google Translate to communicate with the victim, the suspects left the house with $75,000 worth of jewelry, a Ferragamo handbag, a Judith Leiber handbag, a Gucci purse, coins from a box inside the house and the victim's phone. Documents obtained by Fox News at the time indicated that Manuel Hernandez-Hernandez, one of the men arrested, said the other men were part of the Anti-Tren gang, something the Dallas Police Department didn't comment on. Fox News Digital's Audrey Conklin contributed to this article source: Emerging Venezuelan gang 'more violent' than Tren de Aragua targets rural America, expert warns
Fox News
13-05-2025
- Politics
- Fox News
Emerging Venezuelan gang 'more violent' than Tren de Aragua targets rural America, expert warns
Print Close By Adam Sabes Published May 13, 2025 An emerging Venezuelan gang has the potential to be "more violent" than Tren de Aragua and target rural America, according to an expert. Members of the Venezuelan-based gang have formed the "Anti-Tren" gang, which federal authorities say is made up almost exclusively of former members of Tren de Aragua. In a newly unsealed April federal indictment, prosecutors accused 21 men of running drug and prostitution rings in New York City. According to the indictment, members of Anti-Tren "protect their power and territory through various criminal acts, which includes violence towards members of Tren de Aragua. "Preserving and protecting the power and territory of Anti-Tren and its members and associates through acts involving murder, assault, other acts of violence, and threats of violence, including acts of violence and threats of violence directed at members and associates of Tren de Aragua," the indictment states. TEXAS WOMAN ROBBED, PISTOL-WHIPPED IN RITZY DALLAS AREA BY ILLEGAL VENEZUELAN MIGRANTS WITH GANG TIES: REPORT Members of Anti-Tren are also enriched through illegal smuggling, which includes young Venezuelan women, sex trafficking of young women, drug trafficking and armed robberies, federal officials allege. Robert Charles, assistant secretary of state at the U.S. State Department's Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs from October 2003 to March 2005 and Maine gubernatorial candidate, told Fox News Digital he thinks the Anti-Tren group has the potential to become more violent than Tren de Aragua. "I've read some of the public accounts that suggest that this offshoot group is trying to distinguish itself by being more violent," Charles said. "With MS-13, they had various tests and things that they went through, and there were offshoots there that became more violent than the original group." Charles said gangs like Anti-Tren attempt to dominate an area geographically and one of the ways they accomplish that is through violence and intimidation. 11 ALLEGED TEEN TREN DE ARAGUA GANG MEMBERS ATTACK NYPD OFFICERS: POLICE "They are also doing violence in an environment which they're taking advantage of people. They're taking advantage of the homeless, they're taking advantage of rural America," Charles said of Anti-Tren. Charles said gangs like Anti-Tren are targeting rural parts of America because that's where they can "maximize their gain" with little risk. "We don't have the infrastructure in a very rural state to put patrols up through the northern part of the state and, frankly, to even keep drugs from coming in and the gangs from coming here," Charles said of his state, Maine. "Criminals are bad guys, but they are not stupid. And so what they look for is they look for opportunities to maximize their gain with the least possible risk." Charles said he thinks the group will be eager to get into fights with Tren de Aragua, which is why authorities need to work fast to quash the group. "I think right now their numbers are relatively modest," Charles said. "If you look away from it, if you pretend that it's not important, if you appease it instead of deterring it, then absolutely it will grow. That's just the nature of crime." The Anti-Tren gang has a presence that expands beyond New York City. In September 2024, a Texas woman was robbed at gunpoint, pistol-whipped and tied up in her Dallas-area home located in the ritzy neighborhood of Bluffview, where the average home value is $880,000, according to Zillow. The robbery happened around 10 p.m. on Sept. 21, 2024, after the woman had just returned home from dinner. The men involved in the incident allegedly targeted the woman in her driveway, forced her into her home, then tied her up at gunpoint, according to records obtained by Fox News. The men involved allegedly threatened to cut her fingers off. Using Google Translate to communicate with the victim, the suspects left the house with $75,000 worth of jewelry, a Ferragamo handbag, a Judith Leiber handbag, a Gucci purse, coins from a box inside the house and the victim's phone. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Documents obtained by Fox News at the time indicated that Manuel Hernandez-Hernandez, one of the men arrested, said the other men were part of the Anti-Tren gang, something the Dallas Police Department didn't comment on. Fox News Digital's Audrey Conklin contributed to this report. Print Close URL
