Watts Varrio Grape

Full Name: Watts Varrio Grape
Also Known As: S/S Watts Varrio Grape 13, Watts Varrio Grape Street,  WVG
Founded: 1950s
Founding Location: Jordan Downs / Grape Street, Watts, Los Angeles, California
Ethnicity: Primarily Mexican-American
Affiliation: Sureños (13)
Colors: Purple
Cliques/Subsets: Little Gangsters (LGS), Tiny Winos (TWS)
Allies: Grape Street Watts Crips
Rivals: Fudge Town Mafia Crips, Watts Varrio Elm Street, Florencia 13,
Rappers: 1Way,

The South Side Watts Varrio Grape (SSWVG), also known as Watts Varrio Grape (WVG), is a predominantly, but not exclusively, Hispanic Sureño street gang based in the Jordan Downs/Grape Street section of Watts in South Los Angeles, California.

History And Early Origins

The origins of Watts Varrio Grape trace back to the old La Colonia neighborhood surrounding the Jordan Downs Housing Projects in Watts. During the 1950s and 1960s, the gang included both Mexican-American and African-American youths who claimed the same neighborhood under Watts Varrio Grape.

By around 1973, the original Watts Varrio Grape had split into separate Black and Latino gangs. The Latino members aligned with the growing Sureño movement, adopted the number 13, and became South Side Watts Varrio Grape 13. The Black members remained in the neighborhood and later became known as Watts Baby Locs, then Grape Street Watts Crips, originally referred to by many longtime residents as the Jordan Downs Crips.

Even after becoming separate gangs, the two neighborhoods remained closely connected because many members grew up together in the same housing project. During the 1980s and 1990s, the crack cocaine epidemic fueled drug trafficking and violence throughout Watts. Like many gangs operating around the Jordan Downs Housing Projects, Watts Varrio Grape became involved in ongoing territorial conflicts with neighboring gangs.

Territory And Identity

Watts Varrio Grape is centered around the Jordan Downs Housing Projects and the surrounding Grape Street corridor in Watts. The gang’s traditional neighborhood includes Wilmington Avenue and the nearby blocks of 105th, 106th, and 107th Streets. The neighborhood borders several Black and Latino gangs, resulting in frequent territorial disputes.

Watts Varrio Grape has several neighborhood cliques, including Little Gangsters (LGS) and Tiny Winos (TWS). Members are closely associated with the color purple, a reference to the Grape name, and have been seen wearing purple clothing, shoes, and sports apparel. Graffiti, tattoos, and hand signs using the initials WVG or the Grape name are commonly used to represent the neighborhood.

Documented Incidents

A Night of Retaliation (2006)

One of the most significant cases involving Watts Varrio Grape stemmed from its rivalry with Watts Varrio Elm Street. On June 18, 2006, a Watts Varrio Grape member shot and killed Henry Carrillo, a member of Elm Street Watts. Later that night, Jorge Alfredo Bautista and other Elm Street members drove into Watts Varrio Grape territory seeking retaliation.

They opened fire on what they believed was a rival gang member, but instead struck an innocent woman, who later died from her injuries. Bautista was convicted of murder and attempted murder, highlighting how quickly gang retaliation could claim the lives of uninvolved residents.

A Murder On Grape Street (2008)

In 2008, a Fudge Town Mafia Crips member known as Artie “Limp” Pullam entered Watts Varrio Grape territory near 107th Street and Grape Street and challenged local gang members to a fight. The confrontation escalated when a Watts Varrio Grape member approached Pullam from behind and shot him multiple times, killing him at the scene.

The shooter was later convicted of murder and sentenced to 50 years to life in state prison. Pullam’s killing marked the beginning of rising tensions between Watts Varrio Grape and the Fudge Town Mafia Crips. This feud escalated into repeated shootings and homicides in the years that followed.

Respect Turns Deadly (2009)

In July 2009, Kevin “Drowsy” Sanchez, a 16-year-old Watts Varrio Grape member affiliated with the Little Gangsters (LGS) and Tiny Winos (TWS) cliques, became involved in a confrontation near 105th Street and Wilmington Avenue after Jorge Hernandez claimed to be a “big homie” within the gang. Sanchez disputed Hernandez’s authority, and the argument quickly turned physical before escalating into gunfire.

During the confrontation, fellow Watts Varrio Grape members Tomas Amaya and Aldo Arevalo joined the fight. Hernandez was shot multiple times but survived. Prosecutors later argued the shooting was carried out to reinforce gang discipline and establish respect within the neighborhood. Sanchez, Amaya, and Arevalo were all charged in connection with the attack, and the case became one of the more detailed court records documenting the gang’s internal hierarchy and clique structure.

The Murder of Knuckles (2011)

On October 11, 2011, Oscar “Knuckles” Arevalo, a Watts Varrio Grape member, was shot and killed near Wilmington Avenue and 106th Street. Investigators linked the killing to the ongoing feud between Watts Varrio Grape and the Fudge Town Mafia Crips. Days later, officers attempting to stop a suspected gang member connected to the retaliation encountered an armed suspect who pointed an automatic firearm equipped with an extended magazine at police before fleeing.

The Killing of Angel Mauro Cortez Nava (2012)

The rivalry between South Side Watts Varrio Grape 13 and the Fudge Town Mafia Crips led to one of the most tragic shootings in Watts. On June 4, 2012, Angel Mauro Cortez Nava, a one-year-old boy, was shot and killed while being held in his father’s arms near the Jordan Downs Housing Projects.

Prosecutors charged Donald Ray Dokins, a 15-year-old associate of the Fudge Town Mafia Crips, as an adult. He was later convicted and sentenced to 90 years to life in state prison. The shooting drew widespread attention because an innocent child was killed during an ongoing gang feud.

Alliances And Rivals

South Side Watts Varrio Grape 13 remained a longtime ally of the Grape Street Watts Crips, a relationship that began before the two gangs separated during the 1970s.

Watts Varrio Grape’s longest-running feud has been with the Fudge Town Mafia Crips. Other rivals include Watts Varrio Elm Street, Watts 13, Diez Line Watts 13, Watts Ivy Street, Watts Hickory Street, Florencia 13, and Weigand Colonia.

News

• Double Murder on Grape Street
• 15-year-old accused in shooting death of 1-year-old boy