Aryan Brotherhood prison gang member investigated for attempted homicide at California prison

California prison officials said an investigation is underway after a member of the Aryan Brotherhood prison gang attempted to kill two prison guards Friday at California State Prison, Sacramento.

Ronald Yandell, 62, is accused of wielding an “improvised weapon” about 8:20 a.m. at two prison guards escorting him to his cell, according to a Tuesday news release from the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. In a separate case, Yandell was convicted in April — along with two others — for conspiring to murder fellow gang members across California prisons if they broke their gang rules.

A prison guard deployed “three applications” of pepper spray and Yandell dropped the weapon, the news release said. He was restrained and brought to be examined by medical staff.

Yandell and the officers suffered no injuries, the CDCR news release said. The Sacramento County District Attorney’s Office will investigate the case.

Yandell was incarcerated March 18, 2004, after he was convicted in Contra Costa County of first-degree murder and voluntary manslaughter.

His notoriety grew while in prison.

A Sacramento County federal jury found him guilty of 15 charges such as racketeering, conspiracy to commit murder, distribution of methamphetamine and heroin and murder in aid of racketeering in the 2015 slaying of notorious inmate Hugo Pinell. Prosecutors said Yandell operated in a gang that ordered hits on inmates and people outside of prison.

Yandell is scheduled to be sentenced in the racketeering case Dec. 18.