Leader of Aryan Knights Prison Gang Pleads Guilty to RICO Conspiracy and Assault with a Dangerous Weapon in Aid of Racketeering

BOISE – James Ramsey, 43, formerly the overall leader of the Idaho prison gang known as the Aryan Knights, or “AK,” pleaded guilty today to one count of conspiracy to participate in a racketeering enterprise under the federal RICO statute (the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organization Act) conspiracy and one count of assault with a dangerous weapon in aid or racketeering, U.S. Attorney Josh Hurwit announced today.  With Ramsey’s guilty plea, all defendants in a ten-defendant RICO case charged in 2019 have now pleaded guilty.  Sentencing for Ramsey is set for October 22, 2024.

The defendant was a member of an enterprise called the “Aryan Knights” (“AK”) since at least 2007. The AK is a prison gang that operates within Idaho Department of Correction (“IDOC”) prison facilities but also outside of IDOC facilities in the District of Idaho. It was founded to organize criminal activity for a select group of white inmates within IDOC custody. The defendant has held various positions of rank in the AK, including being the overall leader of the gang in 2015 and 2016. The AK is a corrupt racketeering enterprise, as defined in the RICO statute. It has a code of conduct that includes, but is not limited to, carrying out orders and submitting to discipline from the leaders of the gang. The AK derives its revenue from, among other things, extortion and smuggling and distributing controlled substances into IDOC facilities.

The defendant knowingly agreed that he or a co-conspirator would participate in the conduct of the affairs of the enterprise through a pattern of racketeering activity. Among other things, AK members were ordered by AK leaders, including the defendant, to engage in criminal activity. As part of his participation in the AK, the defendant frequently communicated with other members of the AK about participating in collecting debts, extortion in IDOC prison facilities to be committed by AK members and distributing controlled substances in IDOC prison facilities.

As part of the racketeering conspiracy, the defendant participated in, and understood that other AK members would participate in the following acts:

• From 2010 to 2017, the AK trafficked drugs within IDOC. This includes a 2015–2016 scheme to smuggle methamphetamine into IDOC using an inmate’s wheelchair, arranging for methamphetamine to be smuggled in using another inmate’s girlfriend, and a system of “kick downs” the Defendant implemented. The defendant, along with other AK members, distributed and arranged the distribution of drugs, including methamphetamine, during this period.

• In the spring of 2016, the Defendant ordered that AK members attack another inmate (the victim). The victim was a former AK member. On June 15, 2016, co-defendant Harlan Hale and two other AK members attacked the victim on an IDOC baseball field. They beat and stabbed the victim multiple times with homemade knives, intending to kill the victim. Hale previously pleaded guilty to participating in the RICO conspiracy and admitted that he committed this attack as an integral aspect of gang membership.

All ten of the AK defendants in this case have pleaded guilty, and eight have been sentenced so far:

• Harlan Hale, 58, was sentenced in March of 2021 to life in federal prison.

• Christopher Foss, 35, was sentenced in September, 2020, to 210 months in federal prison, with 174 months to be served after his earliest possible parole date for his current state prison sentence. Foss was also ordered to serve five years of supervised release following his incarceration.

• Buck Pickens, 35, was sentenced in September, 2020, to 206 months in federal prison, with 60 months to be served after his earliest possible parole date for his current sentence. Pickens was also ordered to serve five years of supervised release following his incarceration.

• Steven Bowman, 41, was sentenced in May, 2023, to 78 months in federal prison, to be served after his earliest possible parole date for his current sentence. Bowman was also ordered to serve five years of supervised release following his incarceration.

• Nicholas Sites, 39, was sentenced in January, 2023, to 55 months in federal prison. Sites was also ordered to serve five years of supervised release following his incarceration.

• Mark Woodland, 53, was sentenced in June, 2023, to 51 months in federal prison, to be served after his earliest possible parole date for his current sentence. Woodland was also ordered to serve three years of supervised release following his incarceration.

• Lucas Johnson, 35, was sentenced in May, 2021, to 48 months in federal prison to be followed by five years of supervised release.

• Michael McNabb, 40, was sentenced in August, 2020, to 28 months in federal prison to be followed by three years of supervised release.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation with assistance from IDOC’s Special Investigations Unit, the Ada County Sheriff’s Office, and the Ada County Prosecutor’s Office.

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