The Satanas gang (aka Ese Te Ese, or STS) is a

Filipino American Filipino Americans () are Americans of Filipino ancestry. Filipinos in North America were first documented in the 16th century and other small settlements beginning in the 18th century. Mass migration did not begin until after the end of the Sp ...

street gang A gang is a social group, group or secret society, society of associates, friends, or members of a family with a defined leadership and internal organization that identifies with or claims control over Wiktionary:territory#Noun, territory in a ...

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural List of regions of California, region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Its densely populated coastal reg ...

, founded in 1972. It is believed to be the oldest Filipino-American street gang in Los Angeles.

History

Satanas was a clique from Temple Street since the 1920s that went solo in the 1970s. In 1972, a car club group started in the

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

area by some Filipino AmericansGang Training Manual, City of Glendale Police Department, Glendale, CA (2010). page 11. "The "Satanas" gang was formed in 1972..." who had formed a cultural bond in a city where they were a minority. At first the club was exclusively for

Filipinos Filipinos () are citizens or people identified with the country of the Philippines. Filipinos come from various Austronesian peoples, all typically speaking Filipino language, Filipino, Philippine English, English, or other Philippine language ...

. They soon branched out to other

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

cities including

San Diego San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...

, La Puente, Cerritos, Oxnard

Long Beach Long Beach is a coastal city in southeastern Los Angeles County, California, United States. It is the list of United States cities by population, 44th-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 451,307 as of 2022. A charter ci ...

, Norwalk,

North Hollywood North Hollywood is a neighborhood and district in the San Fernando Valley of Los Angeles, California. The neighborhood contains the NoHo Arts District, El Portal Theater, several art galleries, and the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. Th ...

, West Covina, Chino, Chino Hills, Santa Ana, San Gabriel, Buena Park, Delano, Palmdale,

Anaheim Anaheim ( ) is a city in northern Orange County, California, United States, part of the Greater Los Angeles area. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 346,824, making it the most populous city in Orange County, the tenth-most ...

, Vallejo, and San Jose and have reached other states on the east coast like

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

and New York, and the

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

. Some other Filipino gangs such as the Demonios and Diablos (not the Mexican gang of the same name) claim their roots to Satanas, having originated amongst second generation STS members and younger siblings of individuals who were members of STS; the founders of many other

gangs were originally members of Satanas. Since there were cultural similarities between

and

Mexicans Mexicans () are the citizens and nationals of the Mexico, United Mexican States. The Mexican people have varied origins with the most spoken language being Spanish language, Spanish, but many also speak languages from 68 different Languages o ...

, many of Ese Te Ese's older members and leaders allied with

Chicano Chicano (masculine form) or Chicana (feminine form) is an ethnic identity for Mexican Americans that emerged from the Chicano Movement. In the 1960s, ''Chicano'' was widely reclaimed among Hispanics in the building of a movement toward politic ...

gangs in its early years within their surrounding neighborhoods. Accounts of Los Angeles gang history often placed both Filipinos and Mexicans side by side with each other during various street wars.

Notable crimes

Francisco Gamez and Luis Silva

In December 1982, eight members of the Satanas gang were found guilty in a trial for the killing of Francisco Gamez and Luis Silva who were not gang members but were mistaken as ones. Gamez and Silva chased two cars each carrying four members of Satanas. Gunshots had been fired from the two cars just behind the Gamez home. Gamez and Silva gave chase for at least two miles. At the end of the chase, Gamez was shot in the head and Silva was shot in the back, shoulder and head as he tried to escape.

Manuel Rodriguez

In November 1989 Manuel Rodriguez, a member of the Lemonwood Chiques gang, was shot and killed by Arnell Salagubang, a member of the Satanas gang. Salagubang and Manuel Rodriguez had been arguing in front of Channel Islands High School. Salagubang pulled out a small caliber handgun and shot Rodriguez in the head. Salagubang fled the scene, but a witness was able to get his license plate number. The witness turned the information over to the police who arrested Salagubang the next day.

References

External links

Youth Groups and Youth Savers: Gangs, Crews, and the Rise of Filipino American Youth Culture in Los AngelesFilAms in crossfire as LA gang violence ragesLeader of Violent California Gang Sentenced

FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and Federal law enforcement in the United States, its principal federal law enforcement ag ...

{{Organized crime groups in the Americas Organizations established in 1972 1972 establishments in California Asian-American gangs Street gangs Gangs in Los Angeles Filipino-American culture in California