Joe Fong (1954-) was a Macanese-American gang leader who led the Chung Ching Yee ("Joe Boys") gang in San Francisco from 1971 to 1973.
Biography[]
Joe Fong was born in Macau in 1954, and he, his parents, and his nine siblings emigrated to San Francisco when Joe was eight. At 11, he was found guilty of burglary, and, at the age of 15, he and his gang joined Wah Ching. He resisted his gang's plans to join the Hop Sing Tong, founding the Chung Ching Yee gang with the purpose of having complete freedom from the established Chinese gangs. As a result, his brother Glen Fong was murdered on 1 March 1970, leading to 1970 being Chinatown's bloodiest year ever. Fong was responsible for several murders, but the Tongs sent messages to the Joe Boys by publicly hanging Chung Ching Yee members such as George Yun on 5 November 1970 and Allen Hom on 19 November, using the same rope for each hanging. Raymond Leung pulled the insane Fong to the side and suggested that he calm down to avoid making the situation worse, resulting in Fong having Leung murdered. Fong was arrested on 2 October 1972 for attempted murder, and he was imprisoned until 1979. Afterwards, he went on to attend college and receive a master's degree, turning his life around.