ARMENIAN POWER GANG ASSOCIATE CONVICTED FOR HIS ROLE IN RACKETEERING CONSPIRACY
Justice Department Documents and Publications
February 12, 2014
U.S. Department of Justice February 12, 2014
Office of Public Affairs (202) 514-2007/TDD (202) 514-1888
Andranik Aloyan, an associate of the Armenian Power gang, has been
convicted at trial for his role in a racketeering conspiracy that
included stealing personal and financial information of elderly bank
customers who held accounts that were valued at more than $25 million.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Mythili Raman of the Justice
Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Andre Birotte, Jr. of the
Central District of California and Assistant Director in Charge Bill
L. Lewis of the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office made the announcement.
Aloyan, 40, of Los Angeles, was convicted by a federal jury on
February 11, 2014, of racketeering conspiracy, attempted bank fraud,
access device fraud, four counts of aggravated identity theft, and
possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. According to evidence
at trial, Aloyan possessed personal and financial information of more
than 75 mostly elderly customers of banks throughout the country. The
combined value of the accounts for which Aloyan possessed account
information exceeded $25 million.
Aloyan was among 90 individuals charged in two indictments, including a
140-count indictment in July 2011 charging 70 defendants with a variety
of criminal activities associated with the Armenian Power gang. The
indictment accused 29 defendants, including Aloyan, of participating
in the Armenian Power racketeering conspiracy that involved a host of
illegal activities such as sophisticated fraudulent schemes of bank
fraud, identity theft, debit-card skimming, manufacturing counterfeit
checks, and laundering criminal proceeds. In addition, defendants
in the case were allegedly involved in a variety of violent crimes,
such as kidnapping, extortion, and firearms offenses, along with
other crimes including drug trafficking and illegal gambling.
According to court documents, the Armenian Power street gang formed in
the East Hollywood district of Los Angeles in the 1980s. The gang’s
membership consisted primarily of individuals of Armenian descent,
as well as of other countries within the former Soviet bloc. Armenian
Power has been designated under California state law as a criminal
street gang and is believed to have more than 250 documented members,
as well as hundreds of associates. According to court documents,
Armenian Power members and associates regularly carry out violent
criminal acts, including murders, attempted murders, kidnappings,
robberies, extortions, and witness intimidation to enrich its members
and associates and preserve and enhance the power of the criminal
enterprise.
Aloyan was convicted after a five-day jury trial before U.S. District
Judge Philip S. Gutierrez in the Central District of California. He
is scheduled to be sentenced on June 2, 2014.
Five defendants remain pending trial in March 2014. Seventy-seven
defendants have previously been convicted or pleaded guilty to the
indictments.
The case is being investigated by the Eurasian Organized Crime Task
Force, which is composed of the FBI, the U.S. Secret Service, the Los
Angeles Police Department, the Glendale Police Department, the Burbank
Police Department, the Internal Revenue Service, and U.S. Immigration
and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Martin
Estrada, Elizabeth Yang, and Stephen Wolfe of the Central District
of California and Trial Attorney Andrew Creighton of the Criminal
Division’s Organized Crime and Gang Section.