LOS ANGELES
– An investigation by federal and local authorities has resulted in a federal
racketeering case that charges 22 people linked to the MS-13 transnational
gang, most of whom allegedly participated in a series of murders, including
several slayings in which victims were hacked to death with machetes in the
Angeles National Forest.
A 12-count
indictment unsealed Monday afternoon alleges that members and associates of the
gang murdered seven people over the last two years. The indictment charges gang
leaders who allegedly authorized and coordinated the murders. Also charged are
gang members who allegedly murdered and attempted to murder rival gang members,
those who were perceived to be cooperating with law enforcement, and, in one
instance, a homeless man who was temporarily living in a park controlled by the
gang.
The
indictment focuses on a particularly violent subset of the gang known as the
Fulton clique, which operates in the San Fernando Valley and has recently seen
an influx of young immigrants from Central America. Under the influence of
these young gangsters, younger associates who wanted to become members of MS-13
were “required to kill an MS-13 rival or someone perceived to be adverse to
MS-13 to be initiated into MS-13,” according to the indictment.
In one
murder detailed in the indictment, several MS-13 members allegedly targeted a
rival gang member who was believed to have defaced MS-13 graffiti. On March 6,
2017, according to the indictment, the rival gang member was abducted, choked,
and driven to a remote location in the Angeles National Forest, where six
people attacked him with a machete. The victim was dismembered, and his body
parts were thrown into a canyon after one of the defendants allegedly cut the
heart out of the victim’s body.
The federal
RICO case – which was unsealed Monday during arraignments for three defendants
who were taken into custody over the past several days in the Los Angeles area
– is the product of an investigation by the Los Angeles Metropolitan Task Force
on Violent Gangs, which is made up of special agents with the Federal Bureau of
Investigation, officers with the Los Angeles Police Department, and deputies
with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. A fourth defendant was
arrested over the weekend in Oklahoma.
Over the
past year, the other 18 defendants named in the indictment were taken into
custody, some on state charges and some on federal charges previously filed.
The superseding indictment announced today, which was returned by a federal
grand jury on July 9, adds 15 defendants to an indictment filed in March.
“We have now
taken off the streets nearly two dozen people associated with the most violent
arm of MS-13 in Los Angeles, where the gang is believed to have killed 24
people over the past two years,” said United States Attorney Nick Hanna. “This
investigation has been an unqualified success. The collaborative law
enforcement effort solved several murder cases and dealt a severe blow to
members of the gang who engaged in acts of brutality not seen in the region for
over 20 years. The prosecution of these defendants would not have been possible
without the backing of local law enforcement, including District Attorney
Jackie Lacey, who has supported our efforts every step of the way and has
dedicated substantial resources to ensure that all of these defendants get the
justice they deserve.”
“Taking
violent offenders off the street should send a message to MS-13 members and
their associates that medieval-style violence and senseless murder will not be
tolerated in Los Angeles,” said Paul Delacourt, the Assistant Director in
Charge of the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office. “Working with our local partners,
we expect to impact MS-13’s influence in gang-occupied communities.”
“The greatest tragedy in these cases is that
these young victims likely left their homelands hopeful that in the United
States they would find safety and prosperity,” Los Angeles County District
Attorney Jackie Lacey said. “Instead, these victims had the misfortune of
crossing paths with violent gang members who preyed on the vulnerabilities of
their immigrant experience. My office will vigorously prosecute these
defendants and continue to work with other agencies to enhance public safety in
the communities where MS-13 and other brutal gangs operate.”
“Today’s
charges are the product of diligent work and a steadfast resolve that we will
not let violent criminals continue to victimize our residents,” said Los
Angeles Police Chief Michel Moore. “It can only be accomplished through the
shared vision of our state, local, and federal law enforcement partners.”
“The Los
Angeles County Sheriff’s Department is always willing to work with our local,
state and federal law enforcement counterparts to ensure public safety,” said
Sheriff Alex Villanueva.
The 78-page
indictment charges all but one of the 22 defendants with conspiring to violate
the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act. The RICO charge
alleges nearly 200 “overt acts,” beginning with the transportation of $1.22
million in narcotics proceeds that were seized in Nebraska in 2010. As part of
the RICO conspiracy, members of the gang allegedly committed murders in 2014
and 2015, the second of which is part of a previous racketeering case against
the leadership of MS-13 in Los Angeles.
The majority
of the conduct outlined in the indictment – including seven murders – started
in 2017 and continued into this year. While the indictment focuses on murders
committed to increase the gang’s membership, expand the gang’s power and
intimidate outsiders, the RICO charge also alleges drug-trafficking activities,
including the sale of narcotics to the Fulton clique in Maryland.
In addition
to the conspiracy charge, the indictment contains four counts of first-degree
murder related to machete, knife and baseball bat killings in the Angeles
National Forest, which is within the special maritime and territorial
jurisdiction of the United States. Those four murders – along with a fifth that
occurred in the Malibu hills and a sixth in that was committed in the Fulton
clique’s stronghold of Whitsett Fields Park in North Hollywood – are also
charged as violent crimes committed in aid of racketeering (VICAR), and those
six counts allege that the victims were killed “for the purpose of gaining
entry to and maintaining and increasing position in MS-13 Los Angeles.”
The
indictment also contains allegations that the six VICAR murders were committed
“in an especially heinous, cruel, or depraved manner in that [they] involved
torture or serious physical abuse to the victim.” The 16 defendants charged in
relation to those six murders are eligible for the federal death penalty,
although the government has not indicated whether it will seek such a sentence
for any of the defendants if they are convicted.
In addition
to the RICO case announced today, there are two under-seal cases pending
against juvenile defendants in United States District Court.
In 2017, as the result of another
investigation by the Los Angeles Metropolitan Task Force on Violent Gangs, a
federal grand jury issued a RICO indictment that targeted MS-13’s leadership
across the Los Angeles region. That indictment, which alleged three murders
attributed to the Fulton clique, charged 34 defendants, 14 of whom have pleaded
guilty. Nineteen of the defendants are currently scheduled for trial on
September 24. One defendant in that case – Sergio Alexander Galindo, also known
as “Killer” – remains a fugitive.
An
indictment contains allegations that a defendant has committed a crime. Every
defendant is presumed to be innocent until and unless proven guilty in court.
The federal
RICO case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Joanna Curtis
of the Violent and Organized Crime Section and Deputy District Attorneys Eric
W. Siddall and Carmelia Mejia, Los Angeles County Deputy District Attorneys who
have been designated as Special Assistant United States Attorneys.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment