Ricky Ross (drug trafficker)

Ricky Donnell Ross, also known as "Freeway" Ricky Ross, is known for the " drug empire that he presided over in Los Angeles in the early and mid-1980s." [ [http://www.usdoj.gov/oig/special/9712/ch06p3.htm United States Department of Justice Archive] ] The nickname "Freeway" came from Ross owning several properties along the Harbor Freeway. [Webb, Gary (August 19, 1996). [http://www.constitution.org/abus/narc/day2main.htm Shadowy origins of crack epidemic] . "San Jose Mercury News"] During the height of his drug dealing, Ross claims to have made "2-3 million dollars a week" In 1996, Ross was sentenced to life imprisonment after being convicted of trying to purchase more than 100 kilograms of cocaine from a federal agent. Ross became the subject of controversy later that year when a series of articles by journalist Gary Webb in the "San Jose Mercury News" brought to light a connection between one of Ross's cocaine sources, Danilo Blandon, and the CIA as part of the Iran-Contra scandal. [ [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6r1KfHaIF_Y http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6r1KfHaIF_Y] ; NBC: Drugs and the CIA, YouTube] The decision in Ross's case was brought to a federal court of appeals where his sentence was reduced to 20 years. His sentence has since been reduced further for being a model prisoner and he is currently scheduled to be released on August 13, 2010. [ [http://www.bop.gov/iloc2/InmateFinderServlet?Transaction=NameSearch&needingMoreList=false&LastName=ross&Middle=&FirstName=ricky&Race=U&Sex=U&Age=&x=13& Federal Bureau of Prisons] ]

Biography

Early life

Rick Ross was born in Troup, Texas and as a young child moved to south Los Angeles, California with his mother. Originally interested in tennis, he pursued a scholarship while attending high school. His coach would later find out he was illiterate and removed him from the school. Ross then attended Los Angeles Trade Technical College and again pursued tennis, reaching the 3rd spot on the team. To make money, he turned to selling drugs to pay for tennis lessons. However, an arrest led Ross to quit school.Whiteout: The Cia, Drugs and the Press by Alexander Cockburn and Jeffrey St. Clair, Verso Publishing. Page 6,7]

Cocaine introduction

It was through Henry Corrales, a college friend, that Ross was introduced to cocaine. Through Corrales, Ross found a connection to purchase cheap Nicaraguan cocaine: two Nicaraguan exiles, Oscar Danilo Blandón Reyes and Norwin Meneses Cantarero. Ross began distributing the cocaine around US$10,000 less per kilo than the average street price, his point of distribution being the Bloods and Crips street gangs. Eventually, Ross purchased his cocaine directly from Blandón and Meneses. By 1982, Ross had received his moniker of "Freeway Ricky," and is believed to have been selling over US$3 million in cocaine per day—and purchasing 440 kilos (~970 lbs) of cocaine a week.

In addition to cocaine, Ross was also able to purchase surveillance equipment, such as mini cameras and recording equipment, and because the gang members that worked for him were making a lot of money they would buy weapons ranging from uzi submachine guns to semi-automatic pistols to fight rivals, they also bought expensive jewelery and flashy cars.

Drug empire

With thousands of employees, Ross claimed he operated drug sales not only in Los Angeles but in places across the country including St. Louis, New Orleans, Texas, Kansas City, Oklahoma, Indiana, Cincinnati, South Carolina, Baltimore, Cleveland, and Seattle. He has said many times that his most lucrative amounts of money came from the Ohio area. He made similar claims in a 1996 [http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/race_relations/july-dec96/cia_11-18.html PBS interview] .

Iran-Contra involvement

Ross's capture was facilitated by his career-long dealer Oscar Danilo Blandón, who "set-up" Ross. Blandón had close ties with the Contras, and had met with Contra leader Enrique Bermúdez on several occasions. Blandón was the link between the CIA and Contras during the Iran-Contra affair. Gary Webb interviewed Ross several times before breaking the story in 1996. Ross claims that the reason he was unfairly tried initially was because of his involvement in the scandal. Blandón received a 24 month sentence for his drug trafficking charges, and following his release, was hired by the Drug Enforcement Agency where he was salaried at US$42,000. Blandón was not a U.S. Citizen/National, and is the only known foreigner not to be deported following conviction on drug trafficking charges in U.S. History. The INS granted Blandón a green card, despite the criminal convictions, to allow him to work for the DEA. The DEA claims that they no longer employ Blandón, and his whereabouts are unknown. [http://www.bet.com/BETShows/americangangster_rickyross.htm OnTV Main | BET.com On TV ] ]

Kevin Booth, a documentary film producer, studies the U.S. "War on Drugs" through his film "The Last White Hope," which emphasizes Ross. On the film's latest promo picture, Booth adds the caption: "Free Way Ricky Ross is considered to be the biggest Crack dealer in American History. With zero harassment he was able to gross millions of dollars per day for several years. After Ricky's eventual arrest, he discovered that his supplier had been working for the CIA." It is suspected that he collaborated with the police in order to supplant Ross.

References in rap music

*American rapper Freeway derived his moniker from the nickname of the drug trafficker.
*African American rapper Rick Ross aka William Roberts derived his act from the name and life of the drug trafficker.
*In a recent interview with AllHipHop.com [ [http://allhiphop.com/stories/features/archive/2008/08/01/20354914.aspx Freeway Ricky Ross: Name Check - AllHipHop.com] ] , Ross took offense with rapper "Rick Ross" for using his name and identity after internal Department of Corrections records were acquired by The Smoking Gun showing Roberts' social security number as having a two year tenure as a corrections officer for the state of Florida. [ [http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/years/2008/0721081rickross1.html Screw Rick Ross - TheSmokingGun.com] ] Although photos [ [http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/years/2008/0721081rickross2.html TheSmokingGun.com] ] exist of Roberts in a corrections officer's uniform, he has denied the connection and the document's legitimacy.
*The lyrics of many rap songs make reference to Ricky Ross. For example, in the song "My Favorite Mutiny" by The Coup, rapper Boots mentions that the CIA directed Ricky Ross to distribute crack ("before the CIA told Ricky Ross to put crack in the sack").Cite web |url=http://www.ohhla.com/anonymous/coup_the/pickabig/mfmutiny.cou.txt |title="My Favorite Mutiny" lyrics |publisher=The Original Hip-Hop Lyrics Archive |accessdate=2008-03-15]
*In Mos Def's 1999 song "Mathematics," he alludes to the link between Ross and the CIA with the lines, "Nearly half of America's largest cities is one-quarter black/ That's why they gave Ricky Ross all the crack."Cite web |url=http://www.ohhla.com/anonymous/mos_def/black_on/math.mos.txt |title="Mathematics" lyrics |publisher=The Original Hip-Hop Lyrics Archive |accessdate=2008-05-19]
*In The Game's 2006 song "Ol' English", he says "Wanted to be Freeway Rick/ He showed me how turn a stolen 5.0 into a brick."Cite web |url=http://www.OHHLA.com/anonymous/the_game/advocate/english.gme.txt
title="Ol' English" lyrics |publisher=The Original Hip-Hop Lyrics Archive |accessdate=2008-05-19]

References

External links

* [http://freewayenterprise.blogspot.com/ Ricky Ross's Blog] ; Blogspot
* [http://www.bet.com/BETShows/americangangster_rickyross.htm Profile on the show] American Gangster
* [http://www.streetgangs.com/magazine/freewayrick.html Freeway Ricky Ross Timeline] - November 2, 2006 Streetgangs.com
* [http://www.americandrugwar.com/new/ross.htm 'Freeway' Ricky Ross] – americandrugwar.com
* [http://dir.salon.com/story/news/feature/2004/10/25/contra/index.html?pn=1 How John Kerry exposed the Contra-cocaine scandal] – Salon
* [http://www.usdoj.gov/oig/special/9712/ch06p1.htm The CIA-Contra-Crack Cocaine Controversy: A Review of the Justice Department's Investigations and Prosecutions] – U.S. Department of Justice
* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6r1KfHaIF_Y Drugs and the CIA] Dateline NBC