MIDLAND, Texas – A member of a local white supremacist prison gang on trial for allegedly making methamphetamines pleaded guilty Tuesday to charges of conspiracy, manufacturing and distributing meth and operating a continuing criminal enterprise.
Andrew Criswell was a member of the Aryan Circle gang, a Texas prison gang. Some of the gang’s members are on trial for manufacturing 15,000 grams or 33 pounds of methamphetamine.
There are 10 remaining co-defendants, including local gang leader Charles Samson, facing drug and organized crime charges following a four-year investigation, The Midland Reporter-Telegram reported for its Wednesday editions.
U.S. District Judge Robert Junell has issued a gag order in the trial, which began Monday and is expected to last three weeks.
Tuesday, the judged ruled that evidence recovered by police in April from an Odessa motel room that was allegedly used by the gang could be presented in the trial.
It includes a large amount of methamphetamine in plastic bags, chemicals to make the drug, scales to weigh it, a police radio scanner, and a spiral notebook detailing the gangs organization and practices, Odessa Police Department Sgt. Mike Tacker testified Tuesday.