Erie Police Chief Steve Franklin said his department became familiar with the Stick Up Kids, or S.U.K., about two years ago. His officers were arresting individuals who had traits similar to each other. Franklin then knew the department was dealing with a criminal gang.
"We were starting to see the S.U.K. graffiti. The S.U.K. on the shirts. One was sporting the S.U.K. tattoo. So that brought more focus on these individuals to see exactly what S.U.K. was," he said.
Over the past few months, S.U.K. members were arrested for crimes varying from attempted homicide to robbery and burglary. Three members were apprehended during a raid last October at a house on East 9th Street. The latest arrest came Tuesday when police brought in Julian Mickel, 22, on robbery charges.
"We have not seen this type of activity out of other groups. We've seen a lot of loosely knit individuals who commit crimes and a lot of times they will commit crimes with each other. But this is the most organized we've seen to date so far," Franklin said.
The chief identified 14 members of the S.U.K. gang that have been charged with various crimes. He says the department has also identified 16 associate members who are still under investigation."
"They're on the radar. Should we see them become involved in the same type of activity, they can join their friends where they're at right now," Franklin said.
Franklin says the 14 people arrested were the core of the S.U.K. 13 of them remain in prison. He says the S.U.K. gang has been placed out of business.
"There are others out there, but we think we pretty much punched a hole right through the center of this gang."
Franklin said S.U.K. activity was not limited to the city. He said some burglaries occurred in communities such as North East and Fairview.
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