Dominican Gangs: Profile
With the rise of Dominican immigrants in the United States during the 1980s, street gangs and drug gangs were formed. With the Washington Heights section of Manhattan (NYC) establishing itself as the Dominican Republic of the United States, many Dominican street gangs and drug gangs were created. With Dominican drug lords having extensive access to cocaine supplies, street level dealers and street gang members were abundant. By the early 1990s, with the establishment of high-pressure initiatives against Dominican drug dealers in Washington Heights, many dealers and gang members were arrested and incarcerated or simply fled for a safer region. With this high pressure, drug dealers sought refuge to continue their businesses in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Upstate New York State, Ohio and many Eastern States.
Dominican street gangs like the Dominican Posse, Dominican Power, Dominicans Don’t Play and Dominicans For Life became very active during the mid 1990s. Home Invasion (rip-off) robberies (called Tumbe), Bodega (Spanish Grocery Store) robberies and street level drug dealing are common activities of Dominican Street gangs.