A federal jury convicted four defendants on numerous charges relating to a murder, a violent gang enterprise, and a drug trafficking conspiracy operating in Virginia, California, and several other states.
Peter Le, 24, of Dunn Loring, Young Yoo, 26, of Centreville, Joseph Lamborn, 28, of California, and Tony Le, 28, also of California, were members of a violent Northern Virginia Street gang called the Reccless Tigers, which was affiliated with a California gang called the West Side Asian Boyz, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.
The gang, which originated in Centerville in 2011, distributed thousands of pounds of marijuana as well as other THC products, cocaine, ecstasy, and prescription drugs, the prosecutors said.
According to the prosecutors many of the gang’s customers were middle and high school students in Northern Virginia and college students at a number of Virginia universities.
According to court records, victim Brandon White, owed Yoo approximately $10,000 for marijuana he had obtained from Yoo. In August 2018, White was severely beaten by a Reccless Tigers gang member, David Nguyen, because of this debt. Nguyen was arrested by Fairfax County Police and charged with robbery and malicious wounding. The gang was aware that White had been subpoenaed to testify against Nguyen at a preliminary hearing and attempted to pay him if he would refuse to testify. White was threatened that he would be killed if he testified. White refused the gang’s offer, and he testified against Nguyen on Nov. 19, 2018.
On Jan. 31, 2019, and continuing into the early morning hours of February 1, 2019, White was abducted at a shopping mall in Fairfax County and then killed two hours later in a wooded area of Richmond by Peter Le, Yoo, and Lamborn.
The evidence at trial indicated that the gang also engaged in persistent pattern of intimidation and retaliation against individuals who did not pay their drug debts and anyone who were believed to have cooperated with law enforcement. Homes in Fairfax, Stafford, and Prince William counties were attacked with Molotov cocktails and vandalized on numerous occasions, forcing homeowners in some instances to move.
There was also testimony about tattoos some of the gang members got after Brandon White’s death – gravedigger tattoos and teardrop outlines on their cheeks, signifying they had killed someone.
Twenty-four people have been charged in connection with the investigation of the Reccless Tigers, and 16 pleaded guilty to federal charges and have already been sentenced.
The four members found guilty Friday were convicted of the following charges:
Peter Le:
- conspiracy to engage in racketeering
- narcotics trafficking and related narcotics offenses
- kidnapping
- murder
- money laundering
Joseph Lamborn:
- conspiracy to engage in racketeering
- narcotics trafficking
- kidnapping
- murder
Young Yoo:
- conspiracy to engage in racketeering
- narcotics trafficking
- kidnapping and murder
Tony Le:
- conspiracy to engage in racketeering
- narcotics trafficking
Peter Le, Yoo, and Lamborn face mandatory life sentences. Tony Le faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison and a maximum sentence of life imprisonment. Their sentencing is set for Sept. 9.
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