Vato Maldito: My Life of Crime by John "Bubbles" Gallegos, edited by Raoul Vehill

I was reparoled in June, 1981. I had nowhere to stay when I got out. My brother Richard said I could stay with him for awhile. I was awakened by Richard getting something from under the bed I slept on. From under the mattress he withdrew a large white plastic bag filled with a white powdery substance.

"I'm leaving for Colorado Springs in a couple of days. This bag belongs to Sam. Tell him I took a couple of grams out, and that I'll pay him in a couple of days."

He left, and I went back to sleep. I was awakened again by the telephone ringing. It was my brother Sam. "I left a plastic bag in the basement," he said."I'm sending a friend over to pick it up. Give him the bag and the shaving kit when he gets there."

The plastic bag contained a kilo of pure Peruvian cocaine. The shaving kit had $4O,OOO dollars in it. When his friend arrived I gave him the goods.

I got a job paving highways working 10 to 12 hours a day. Most of the guys I worked with were recreational users of cocaine. On weekends after we cashed our checks, some of them would ask me to buy the drug for them.

My brother Sam began to sell me ounces, which I, in turn, would sell by the gram. An ounce would cost me $22OO. I would charge $3OOO for an ounce, or sell it by the gram. If I sold it piecemeal, I was making more money selling coke than by working.

Sam had a problem with Dave C., the guy I had been working with in 1978, '79. Sam asked if I could take care of the problem for him, one way or another. Dave had reneged on a payment for my brother's product, which he had consigned to Dave.

Dave was more or less hiding from my brother. It was not so much the $1O,OOO or so which Dave owed him. Sam felt insulted by the way Dave was avoiding him. So I agreed to handle the problem, one way or another.

First of all, I had to locate Dave. I had just gotten out of the territorial prison at Canon City, after serving 18 months on a parole violation. So I asked my cousin, Shorty M. to help me find Dave, as he was in my brother's group too.

Dave was staying with a lawyer, David M., who was also involved in my brother's group. I went to the lawyer's house and happened to find Dave C. there.

"Why have you been avoiding my brother?" I asked of Dave. For a moment, be was at a loss for words, but I waited patiently for him to answer.

Finally Dave said, "Well John, I was working for Sam for awhile, moving his product. He's your brother, and because I learned that you had recently been paroled, I became fearful that you would hurt me, or worse. I went into hiding, especially when I heard that you wanted to take me out of circulation."

I laughed at him and asked, "Dave, do you think I'm stupid? All I want for you to do is face my brother and make amends. Tell him you're sorry. You hurt him deeply, and you're not going to shine my brother on like that."

I set up a meeting between my brother and Dave, the next day. Dave showed up at the appointed time and apologized to Sam, who gave Dave a couple of ounces of pure product to help him get back on his feet, and told me that I was responsible for Dave. In other words, if Dave couldn't pay the debt, I would have to pay the bill. The way it turned out, I ended up having to pay about half of it.

That was still better than having to shoot Dave. It isn't in me to deliberately hurt people. If it cost me a little to avoid the violence, I'd just as soon pay the debt.

Even though I am a thief and have broken a few commandments, I believe that the material side of existence is not wholly where it's at. The essence of life is spirit. So though few people would believe it, I am deeply religious, and pray every day. I fear the unknown, the spiritual side of life. But I have a profound sense of its power, its magic. Magic is a power which the material side of life can not explain, but which is displayed through power, prayer and belief. Therefore I believe, and prayer is my proclamation of that fact.

VATO MALDITO: My Life of Crime, by John "Bubbles" Gallegos

Now Available!!! from Enlightened Pyramid

A notorious Denver professional criminal tell his story in his own words. Armed robbery, addiction and hard time are just the tip of the ice berg in this career thief's autobio.

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