A Universe of Pure Imagination
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Street Gangs of
EL PASO
Street Gangs of El Paso
Street Gangs of El Paso
Street Gangs of El Paso
Street Gangs of El Paso
In Texas, there's an army of street gangs that operate within the state. Each street gang is a gang made up of kids, teenagers and/or young adults not to exceed 50 members; more than 50 members constitutes its own entry under "Gangs".
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The following is a list of known street gangs in the El Paso, Texas region in the MDU (and are not reflective, representative, nor associative of any existing or defunct gangs in the real world in any respective manner)​.
Border Phantoms
Leader: Elias “Ghostline” Navarro
Number of Members: 20
Location / Territory: Western El Paso, river-adjacent roads, drainage channels, rail crossings, desert cut-throughs, industrial outskirts, and isolated border-side corridors
Allies: No formal street-gang alliance; maintains working relationships with coyote crews and cartel-linked smugglers
Enemies: Las Rosas; Los Derechos; Rojo Ryderz
Weapons of Choice: Compact pistols, knives, batons, utility tools
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Brief Description:
The Border Phantoms are El Paso’s most elusive cross-border logistics gang and one of the most strategically valuable crews in the region.
Rather than fighting for visibility or social influence, they specialize in quiet movement, route knowledge, concealment, scouting, observation, and under-the-radar coordination. Their strongest outside criminal relationships are with coyote crews involved in human smuggling and trafficking and with cartel-linked organizations moving narcotics, contraband, and other illegal cargo.
The Border Phantoms are not a cartel themselves, nor do they dominate border crime outright. Their importance lies in being dependable local specialists who know how to move people or goods discreetly on the El Paso side without drawing unnecessary attention.
They understand drainage channels, rail routes, isolated access roads, utility corridors, service roads, desert cuts, industrial connectors, and neglected border-side approaches better than most of the city’s other gangs. Larger organizations use them because they are quiet, effective, and difficult to track.
Las Rosas
Leader: Marisol “Espina” Reyes
Number of Members: 26
Location / Territory: Segundo Barrio, South El Paso neighborhood corridors, older commercial blocks, neighborhood markets, and border-adjacent nightlife areas
Allies: Los Derechos
Enemies: Rojo Ryderz; Border Phantoms
Weapons of Choice: Compact pistols, knives, switchblades, brass knuckles, collapsible batons
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Brief Description:
Las Rosas is a predominantly female-led street gang built around neighborhood loyalty, intimidation, selective protection rackets, theft, and control of portions of El Paso’s older commercial and nightlife districts.
Their identity is built on contradiction: style and beauty backed by thorns. Members cultivate a polished, confident, visually striking image, but they are known for reacting quickly and aggressively when challenged or disrespected.
Las Rosas maintains influence through neighborhood relationships, fear, visibility, and reputation. They are especially strong in places where nightlife, local commerce, and social visibility overlap.
Los Derechos
Leader: Gabriel “Dueño” Salazar
Number of Members: 28
Location / Territory: Central El Paso, Chamizal-adjacent neighborhoods, older residential-commercial corridors, neighborhood businesses, and east-west street connections
Allies: Las Rosas
Enemies: Sandblasters; Border Phantoms
Weapons of Choice: Handguns, knives, tire irons, batons, chains
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Brief Description:
Los Derechos built their identity around one idea: what is owed.
They operate as collectors, enforcers, pressure merchants, and neighborhood intermediaries, inserting themselves into disputes, debts, protection arrangements, stolen-property exchanges, informal neighborhood power structures, and lower-level business conflicts.
The term derechos may imply rights, but in gang usage it has become much more threatening: their belief that they have the right to collect respect, money, influence, or payment from nearly anyone within reach.
They are less flashy than Las Rosas and less mobile than Rojo Ryderz, but they are often more deeply embedded in the day-to-day power structure of the neighborhoods they influence.
Rojo Ryderz
Leader: Mateo “Redline” Carrasco
Number of Members: 32
Location / Territory: East El Paso, Loop 375 approaches, industrial roads, desert-edge highways, large parking lots, and nighttime racing corridors
Allies: Sandblasters
Enemies: Las Rosas; Border Phantoms
Weapons of Choice: Pistols, tire irons, heavy chains, knives, metal bats
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Brief Description:
The Rojo Ryderz are El Paso’s premier vehicle-oriented street gang, specializing in street racing, stolen performance parts, vehicle theft, illegal betting, and rapid criminal movement through the city’s highway and industrial-road network.
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Their identity revolves around red-painted or red-accented cars, motorcycles, and trucks, with status often determined by speed, style, and vehicle performance. They know El Paso’s nighttime traffic flow, outer roads, industrial connectors, and desert-edge approaches extremely well.
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They are one of the most visible and aggressive gangs in the region, using speed and intimidation as a major part of their reputation.
Sandblasters
Leader: Hector “Dust Devil” Ramos
Number of Members: 30
Location / Territory: Far East El Paso, quarry and construction corridors, desert-edge industrial lots, heavy-equipment yards, and undeveloped fringe zones
Allies: Rojo Ryderz
Enemies: Los Derechos
Weapons of Choice: Heavy pistols, sledgehammers, pry bars, chains, construction tools
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Brief Description:
The Sandblasters are a rough industrial-desert gang built from construction workers, mechanics, equipment operators, scavengers, laborers, and street criminals who know El Paso’s outer development zones better than nearly anyone else.
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Their revenue comes from construction theft, stolen equipment, scrap, intimidation, illegal dumping, protection schemes, and stripping materials from unfinished, stalled, or abandoned sites.
Their name fits both their environment and their method: like a sandstorm, they are abrasive, relentless, and often overpowering through pressure rather than finesse.
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They are less socially polished than Las Rosas, less embedded than Los Derechos, and less subtle than Border Phantoms—but physically and territorially they are among the hardest gangs in the region.
