Skinhead gang member sentenced to 11 years for Soddy-Daisy robbery

Friday, January 1, 1904

photo Joshua Michael Young, 28, was arrested for the armed robbery of El Metate Mexican Restaurant on April 30, 2011. He was sentenced in federal court today to 13 years. He's a validated member of the Skinheads, a violent, white supremacist street gang.

A 28-year-old Skinhead gang member was sentenced to 11 years and four months in prison Thursday for robbing a Mexican restaurant in Soddy-Daisy at gunpoint.

Sporting a 3-inch swastika tattoo behind his left ear, a shaved head and red goatee, Joshua Michael Young stood shackled in Chief U.S. District Judge Curtis Collier's courtroom. Smaller swastikas adorned Young's forearms, which were bare in his short-sleeved orange prison jumpsuit.

Young pleaded guilty to all three counts of his indictment -- being a felon in possession of a firearm, obstruction of commerce by robbery and use of a firearm in the commission of a felony.

Young's court-appointed attorney, U.S. Public Defender Anthony Martinez, told Collier that Young had mental health and drug-abuse problems that contributed to his behavior.

He said that his client took responsibility for the April 30, 2011, robbery of El Metate Restaurant at 9332 Dayton Pike in Soddy-Daisy when he was arrested shortly after the incident.

Martinez said his client told police at his arrest that "he got strung out on Saturday night and robbed El Metate."

Young had no statement for Collier.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Steve Neff said Young is a validated member of the Skinheads, a violent street gang that operates in many U.S. towns and communities, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center in Montgomery, Ala.