FRESNO, Calif. —
Three senior members of the Aryan Brotherhood prison gang have been sentenced in a sweeping federal racketeering case that exposed the gang’s grip on organized crime both inside and outside California’s prison system.
The sentences, handed down in Fresno on May 19, 2025, stem from a multi-year investigation into a violent criminal enterprise operating across several counties and states, federal prosecutors stated.
Francis Clement, 58, and Kenneth Johnson, 63, both high-ranking leaders of the Aryan Brotherhood, were sentenced to life in federal prison with no possibility of parole. A third defendant, John Stinson, 70, also a senior gang leader, was sentenced to 20 years in federal custody.
According to court documents and trial evidence, the Aryan Brotherhood coordinated murders, drug trafficking, and other crimes using smuggled cellphones from within California state prisons.
Between 2016 and 2023, the gang’s criminal activity spanned from methamphetamine sales in state correctional facilities to orchestrated killings in cities across California.
Clement was convicted of RICO conspiracy and five murders in aid of racketeering — all committed while he was behind bars.
Johnson was convicted of RICO conspiracy and two murders. Both men ordered the 2020 killing of Allan Roshanski; another man, Ruslan Magomedgadzhiev, was also killed during that attack. Clement later ordered three more murders in 2022, federal prosecutors stated.
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Stinson, who was already serving time in California’s prison system, held authority over the gang’s membership and sanctioned violent acts. Trial evidence included wiretapped recordings of him conducting Aryan Brotherhood business using a contraband cellphone from his prison cell.
“The convicted defendants led a notorious prison gang that committed ruthless murders, widespread methamphetamine trafficking, and perpetuated a culture of mayhem, fear, and disorder within the prison system that bled into the outside world,” stated Matthew Galeotti, head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division.
Acting U.S. Attorney Michele Beckwith for the Eastern District of California added, “Today’s sentences are yet another blow to the leadership of a violent criminal enterprise run from inside California prisons and spanning multiple counties and states.”
“This case shows that the walls of a prison do not shield violent gang leaders from justice,” said ATF Acting Director Daniel Driscoll.
The investigation, led by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, received assistance from law enforcement agencies in Los Angeles, San Diego, Torrance, Pomona, Kern County, and others across the state. Additional defendants remain awaiting trial.
