Florencia 13 Gang Members Convicted...

Two members of a Los Angeles street gang that was accused of targeting African Americans and engaging in murder, drug dealing and extortion were each sentenced Wednesday to 10 years in federal prison.

Luis Aguilar and Cesar De la Cruz were named in a 2007 indictment against members of Florencia 13, a gang that terrorized residents and rivals in the Florence-Firestone neighborhood in unincorporated Los Angeles County, federal prosecutors said.

Aguilar and De la Cruz were drug dealers for the gang and not involved in attacks against African Americans, said Kevin Rosenberg, an assistant U.S. attorney who helped prosecute the case in Orange County.

De la Cruz’s sentence calls for eight years of supervised release after completion of his prison term. Aguilar was sentenced to lifetime supervised release, Rosenberg said.

Eight other gang members in the indictment were convicted last year.

The indictment painted a chilling picture of unchecked violence in the working-class neighborhood. The gang targeted blacks, sometimes focusing on innocent citizens to send a message, prosecutors said.

At times, authorities said, Florencia members took orders from the prison-based Mexican Mafia, a gang that exerts control over Latino street gangs in Southern California.