EXCLUSIVE: ‘Gangster Disciples’ Boss Larry Hoover In REELZ Crime Documentary

Known as the founder of the notorious Chicago street gang, the Gangster Disciples, Larry Hoover is a legend for starting one of the first street gangs that was run as a business—and he ran it from behind bars.

Hoover, 71, was described by a federal judge last year as “one of the most notorious criminals in Illinois history. He is serving a life sentence at the federal super-max prison in Colorado, convicted in 1997 of running a criminal enterprise in which authorities said he oversaw a $100 million-a-year drug business with tens of thousands of gang soldiers in Chicago and other cities.

The soldiers and associates answer to a corporate-style board that Hoover has led as the undisputed chairman.

While Hoover’s name continues to be controversial, many Chicago residents feel he was a role model to the community. There are several high-profile Hollywood A-listers who are campaigning for his early release, including rap superstar Kanye West, who famously met with President Donald Trump on Hoover’s behalf to ask for Hoover’s charges to be diminished, but the request was denied and Hoover remains incarcerated.

There is much more on Hoover and Chicago’s Gangster Disciples in “Gangsters: America's Most Evil” airing on April 5 at 8 ET/PT on REELZ.

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