OFF THE WIRE
twincities.com
The alleged head of the "Beat Down Posse" gang was sentenced to 15 years in prison and a $300,000 fine for a variety of charges Thursday.
Joseph Robert "Big Joe" Gustafson, 56, a former bail bondsman from North Minneapolis, was sentenced in Hennepin County District Court on charges of racketeering, kidnapping, assault, arson and accessory to aggravated assault, after the fact.
Prosecutors argued Gustafson was the leader of a gang that had terrorized Minneapolis' North Side for at least two decades, beating drug dealers to steal their money and burning down one property for insurance money.
Gustafson, reputed to have been a member of the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club, was also charged with attempted murder and conspiracy to murder. He was acquitted of those charges.
Gustafson, as he did when he was convicted in January, maintained his innocence in a rambling, obscenity-laden statement.
His son, Joseph Robert Gustafson Jr., goes on trial in the case later this month.
