DENVER (KDVR) — A Denver grand jury indicted 12 people who call themselves “The Family” on 92 counts for allegedly committing a series of crimes, some violent and at gunpoint, to support their methamphetamine addiction, according to an announcement Monday from the Denver district attorney’s office.
“The Family” was indicted for allegedly operating as members of an enterprise between April 2019 and October 2020. They also are accused of committing identity theft from more than 240 victims – mainly through mail theft – and stealing more than $550,000 in vehicles.
Additionally, they are also accused of stealing and selling weapons, bicycles, sports memorabilia, jewelry, electronics, money and other items.
Sarah Marie Lore, 38, Estevan Barrientos, 23, Sherry Beth Swain, 36, Martynas Calka, 22, Brian Hernandez, 30, Dakota Maurice Hoffman, 27, Misha Nicholas Lamanna, 41, Derrick Leo Mowery, 33, Clifford James Puppe, 36, Kimberly Jean Redd, 30, Matthew David Sanchez, 34, and Christopher Lee Wallman, 39, comprise “The Family.”
Lore, also known as “Street Mom,” is accused of brokering deals in person and over Facebook to buy and sell items, according to the D.A.’s press release.
The indictment details a pattern of activity in which the defendants, whom Lore called her “Street Sons,” “brothers” and “sisters,” shared money, property, food, clothing and living quarters. They are alleged to have kept a rental locker where they stored items, including a notebook with instructions for how to commit fraudulent schemes.
Lore is also accused of maintaining control of “Family” operations through violent attacks on members of the “Family.”
The 12 members of “The Family” are variously charged with violating Colorado’s Organized Crime Control Act, identity theft, second-degree kidnapping, first-degree burglary, robbery, aggravated motor vehicle theft in the first degree, criminal extortion, theft, menacing, assault in the third degree in addition to the other charges. Eight of the 12 defendants were on probation, some in multiple cases, during the time of the alleged offenses, according to the release.
Multiple organizations were involved in moving forward with an indictment, including the Broomfield Police Department, United States Postal Inspection Service, Colorado Bureau of Investigation, Denver Police Department, RAVEN Task Force, North Metro Drug Task Force, Arapahoe County Sheriff’s Office, Arvada Police Department, Aurora Police Department, Lakewood Police Department, Thornton Police Department and the Colorado State Patrol.
The 12 are being tried individually in Denver District Court.