Samuel Valtierra

Rift of Baron Samedi

Samuel Valtierra (a.k.a. the Baron)

The Baron, who was allegedly once a sullen middle-aged cemetery keeper, now runs Northside. Ruler of the local underworld, he and his White Skull Crew occasionally get involved in shady drug and gun trafficking business, but they mostly dominate the neighbourhood through extortion, threatening local businesses with violence if they don’t pay for their ‘protection’. Surprisingly, since the Baron took over, crime in the neighbourhood has dropped dramatically, with any acts of violence against innocents (i.e. those not involved in underworld dealings) punished severely. Most stores in the district, and particularly vulnerable businesses like liquor stores and diners, pay homage to Valtierra. “Nobody dies unless Valtierra says so,” is the common saying used by his men. And strangely enough, it seems to be true. Valtierra’s gangsters have been known to survive gunshot wounds that should have killed them, popping back out of their base at the Guede Funeral Services seemingly unscathed.
What’s more alarming, Valtierra seems to mysteriously know everything that goes on in the neighbourhood, even secrets people swore to take to their graves, so it seems no-one is safe from him. But Valtierra has bigger aspirations than just this blue-collar residential hood and as a result, more significant problems. His alleged ability to safeguard people from death is interfering with the plans of a much more ancient and powerful underworld bigwig, one who is coming to collect.

History

Valtierra's rise to power started shortly after his life was struck down by tragedy when his daughter was killed in the crossfire between two rival gangs. A week later an unmarked, brown paper-wrapped package was delivered to him. Inside he found the Vodou hex bag he now possesses, which granted him the power over life and death.
Vowing to bring a new era of change to the streets he grew up, and make it safe for people like his daughter, he took over the White Skull Crew. Later, when the Beasts were defeated, he used that opportunity to further expand his territory.
However, this rapid expansion did not go unnoticed. When an assassination attempt was made on Valtierra's life, Valtierra, now calling himself the Baron, assumed that it was the Russian Brotherhood trying to shut him down. The Baron responded, kicking off the turf war between the two groups.

Current

As the war escalated, the Crew was drawn into the conflict between the two sides. When it was revealed that the war had been orchestrated by a third party, the Brotherhood and White Skull Crew was able to come to an amicable truce.