Pat Brady, a member of the notorious Aryan Brotherhood prison gang, was handed a life sentence by U.S. District Judge Kimberly J. Mueller for his role in a murder meant to bolster the gang's racketeering activities. At 53 years old, the Lake Forest resident admitted to the July 2018 killing of an inmate at High Desert Prison—an act meant to enforce the gang's strict codes and maintain his own standing within its ranks, the U.S. Attorney's Office announced.

According to U.S. Attorney's Office, the Aryan Brotherhood was heavily involved in orchestrating violent crimes and drug trafficking between 2011 and 2016. Despite the confines of their cells, members managed substantial heroin and methamphetamine operations, wielding smuggled cellphones as conduits to direct outside activities. Their illicit communications spanned orders for murder and the micro-management of drug deals.

In a plea agreement, Brady acknowledged his deliberate murder of an inmate who falsely claimed AB membership and had accumulated a drug debt. This fatal enforcement of gang law was carried out "willfully, deliberately, and with premeditation," according to the U.S. Attorney's Office. Brady's co-defendant, Jason Corbett, also faces sentencing in November after a guilty plea to the same charges.

Last April, three fellow gang members—Ronald Yandell, Danny Troxell, and Billy Sylvester—were found guilty of RICO conspiracy and related crimes, and they now await sentencing set for Sept. 11. While charges hang over Kevin MacNamara of La Palma, and Kathleen Nolan of Calimesa, their legal fates remain undetermined, with a status conference scheduled for late September. As the law dictates, the charges against them are merely allegations at this point; their presumptions of innocence stand firm until proven otherwise, a detail emphasized by the U.S. Attorney's Office.

The case came to fruition through the cooperative efforts of multiple agencies, including the DEA and the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, under the umbrella of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces program. The OCDETF's mission is to identify and dismantle the most formidable criminal networks that threaten the United States through a focused, intelligence-driven strategy. For more details on the comprehensive investigative efforts leading to these convictions, the U.S. Attorney's Office provides further information.