New York. Soon after arriving in New York, Felipe was arrested and convicted of murdering his girlfriend. In 1986, while in prison, Felipe started his own chapter of the Latin Kings known as the Bloodline. He designated himself as Inca and Supreme Crown of the state of New York. From 1986 to 1994, the ALKQN solidified its status as a gang through crimes such as murder, racketeering, and other offenses covered under the RICO Act. In 1991, Felipe was returned to prison after a short release for parole violations stemming from the receipt of stolen goods. However, Felipe continued to guide the ALKQN members, who now numbered about 2,000, both incarcerated and free. In 1994, with the rapid growth of the Latin Kings, an internal power struggle erupted, and violence within the Kings ensued. Between June 1993 and February 1994, seven Latin Kings were murdered. Following the outbreak of internal gang violence, Luis Felipe and 19 others were charged with murder and racketeering; the indictment process ended in 1995 with 39 Latin Kings and 1 Latin Queen indicted under the RICO Act. Felipe was charged with ordering the killing of William (Lil Man) Cartagena, who had been taken to an abandoned Bronx apartment and strangled, decapitated, mutilated and set on fire. Although Felipe was in prison, the government later alleged he had ordered a T.O.S. ("Terminate On Sight") to all Latin Kings for the murder of Cartagena. This letter and many others were how Felipe was initially linked to three murders on the streets of New York; testimony from former Kings was used as further evidence of the orders. The letters had been copied and stored by the NY Department of Corrections, who were not aware of the significance of the letters until a federal task force was formed that included NYPD homicide investigators, FBI agents, and DOC investigators. Following the 1996 trial and conviction of Luis Felipe, Antonio Fernandez, who was blessed as the Inca and Supreme Crown of New York State, knelt with other Latin Kings in front of the Federal District Court in Manhattan and was quoted as stating, "It's time for a fresh start ... Now they can't hold our past against us." From then on, the ALKQN once again began a transformation. Latin Kings and Queens began appearing en masse at political demonstrations in support of the Latino community. To further its efforts to legitimize,