Piru and West Coast-lineage Bloods sets in South Carolina

Public court and prosecution records place Piru-named Bloods sets in South Carolina from at least 2001, including South Side Piru and Fruit Town Piru in the Charleston area, 900 Boyz / O31 Piru in Florence, 135 Piru in Sumter, Elm Street Piru across the Upstate and Pee Dee, and Tree Top Piru. Recorded cases include a 2010 State Grand Jury gang indictment, a 2017 federal witness-murder conspiracy indictment, and a 2021 appellate ruling on gang evidence. As of October 2026, a Fruit Town Piru-linked federal drug case in North Charleston (26 charged) and a state cartel case citing Piru Bloods associations are pending. [1][2][3][4][5][6]

Origins

A federal indictment summarized by the U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina on May 18, 2017, alleges the Bloods formed in the 1970s in Los Angeles when seven street gangs united. The same release states the United Blood Nation was created separately in 1993 on Rikers Island; UBN sets are covered in a separate profile. The National Drug Intelligence Center reported in December 2001 that South Carolina-based Bloods and Crips were loosely affiliated with the Los Angeles-based gangs. South Carolina charging announcements describe Fruit Town Piru (May 20, 2026) and Tree Top Piru (July 2, 2010) as a sect of the Bloods. [7][8][2][5]

Footprint in South Carolina

Lowcountry: the December 2001 NDIC assessment named the South Side Piru Bloods among violent Charleston and North Charleston gangs and reported they bought cocaine from New York sources. USAO-SC releases dated May 22, 2025 and May 20, 2026 place Fruit Town Piru in North Charleston and West Ashley. [1][9][10][2]

Pee Dee and Midlands: a November 13, 2009 release places the 900 Boyz, also called the O31 (October 31) Piru, in Florence. A June 23, 2021 Court of Appeals opinion places a 135 Piru chapter in Sumter and refers to a 135 Piru leader in Florence. The November 21, 2017 Elm Street Piru indictment named defendants of Greenville, Piedmont, Florence and Bishopville. [3][4]

Upstate and Piedmont: a March 10, 2011 Spartanburg Herald-Journal report listed Treetop Pirus among 31 documented gangs in Spartanburg County. On February 7, 2019, a Chester County deputy solicitor described a Bloods subset called Roundtree Circle; the report does not state a West Coast or Piru lineage for it. In Darlington County, a February 2, 2011 SCNow report identified a Hartsville gang called the Creekside Killers, also called Creek Blood Nation. The source does not describe the group as Piru or state its lineage. [11][12][13]

Structure and organization

For Elm Street Piru, the U.S. Attorney's Office stated on December 7, 2018 that trial evidence established Brian Lewis was the South Carolina leader of a gang with leadership throughout the country. WYFF reported on May 11, 2018 that U.S. Attorney Beth Drake described Lewis as leader of the Elm Street Piru gang for all of South Carolina. [14][15]

Identifiers and symbols

The November 13, 2009 release states the 900 Boyz were also called the O31 (October 31) Piru and committed crimes during the week leading up to Halloween. No other public source opened for this profile describes colors, hand signs or tattoos specific to a South Carolina Piru set. [3]

Notable South Carolina cases

On July 2, 2010, Attorney General Henry McMaster announced State Grand Jury indictments of 15 alleged Tree Top Piru members on charges including murder, armed robbery, kidnapping, gang solicitation under S.C. Code 16-8-240(A) and witness intimidation under 16-8-250. Three were charged with murder in the May 2009 death of 17-year-old Sintray Bell. [5]

In the 900 Boyz case, most members were arrested on a federal complaint on October 30, 2008. On November 13, 2009, three Florence men were sentenced to 15, 10 and five years on federal drug and firearm charges. [3]

On March 22, 2011, Mickey M. Johnson told visitors at a Sumter complex it was 135 Piru territory; a shooting and the murder of a bystander followed. The Sumter Item reported trial testimony on July 17, 2013. On June 23, 2021, the Court of Appeals affirmed his convictions in Opinion No. 5828 and stated no prior South Carolina case had squarely addressed gang-affiliation evidence. [16]

On November 21, 2017, five men were indicted in federal court for conspiracy to attempt to murder a state witness in aid of racketeering; the indictment alleges all five are Elm Street Piru Bloods members. WYFF reported on May 11, 2018 that Antonio Devon Williamson of Florence was sentenced to 60 months, and a federal jury in Anderson convicted Brian Lewis on December 7, 2018. [4][17][15][14]

Inside SCDC

The Times and Democrat reported on July 12, 2007 that during a gang awareness program featuring inmates, one inmate identified himself as a Piru Blood and challenged a Crip before guards intervened. The excerpt reviewed does not name the institution. No other public source opened for this profile addresses Piru sets in SCDC custody. [18]

Current status

On May 20, 2026, USAO-SC announced a nine-count indictment in a Homeland Security Task Force case that began in 2017 with North Charleston gangs including Fruit Town Piru; 26 people had been charged and eight had pleaded guilty. The release describes supply connections in Atlanta and Mexico. Charges are accusations; no verdicts were reported. [2][19]

On August 24, 2026, the Attorney General announced Operation Last Stand State Grand Jury indictments (five indictments, 59 charges, 31 defendants) and stated targets had associations to Piru Bloods and other groups; no specific Piru set was named. On June 2, 2022, WACH reported gang ambassadors representing groups including Piru called a Columbia peace press conference. [6][20]