The trial against three members of La Mara Salvatrucha, also known as MS-13, a transnational criminal organization, on extortion, murder, attempted murder, conspiracy to murder, robbery, and firearms-related charges, will begin next Monday in Brooklyn federal court in New York.
The MS-13 gang members who will be tried face murder charges are Melvi Amador-Ríos, Josue Leiva and Luis Rivas for the fatal May 16, 2017 stabbing of 16-year-old Julio Vasquez in Queens, according to a statement of the Department of Justice (DOJ), in addition to other charges for violent crimes.
Defendant Melvi Amador-Ríos, 32, also known as “Lethal” and “Pinky,” andHe is also charged with extortion, murder for extortion, attempted murder for extortion, assault for extortion, firearms offenses and multiple robberies. If convicted of the murder, he faces a mandatory sentence of life in prison.
He was initially indicted in August 2018 along with his brother Santos Amador-Ríos aka “Rayo”, Yan Carlos Ramírez aka “Demente” and Antonio Salvador aka “Pantro” for conspiracy to commit racketeering murder, attempted racketeering murder, racketeering assault, and discharging a firearm during a crime of violence.
Melvi Amador-Ríos too faces charges for participating in four armed robberies of commercial establishments (a money transfer business and three convenience stores) in Queens.
Suspected members of the MS-13 gang were arrested in connection with the slaying of a teenager who was found in a wooded area in Queens in 2017.
On May 16, 2017, Vasquez was lured to Alley Pond Park in Queens, where CLS members Josue Leiva and Luis Rivas carried out the defendant’s order. by stabbing Vásquez more than 30 times, killing him. The victim was nearly decapitated. Vasquez was 16 years old at the time of his death.
The body of 16-year-old Julio Vasquez was found stabbed to death in Alley Pond Park.
Who will be judged
Melvi Amador-Rios is the alleged leader of the Centrales Locos Salvatruchas (“CLS”) gang of MS-13, of which the co-defendants are also members Santos Amador-Rios and Yan Carlos Ramirez. CLS operated primarily in Jamaica, Queens, in New York City.
Anthony Salvador is a member of the Fulton Locos Salvatruchas (“FLS”) clique of MS-13, the Fulton clique of MS-13 is a subset of the gang that claims parts of North Hollywood, Panorama City and Van Nuys as its territory, in California.
The defendants also face charges for the attempted murder of a 16-year-old boy, an alleged 18th Street gang member on October 23, 2016, who was beaten, shot in the head and attempted to shoot a second time but the firearm apparently jammed. The victim is currently a paraplegic.
“The superseding indictment alleges multiple murder conspiracies, including a kill-or-be-killed plot culminating in the brutal murder of a teenage victim who was stabbed to death for failing to carry out a deadly order,” US Attorney Richard Donoghue said in a 2019 release. “The senseless violence that MS-13 embodies poses an extreme danger to our communities and underscores the determination of this Office, along with our law enforcement partners, to eradicate the gang.”
District Judge Rachel Kovner granted the government’s request for an anonymous jury for the trial.
Keep reading:
– Three MS-13 gang members plead “not guilty” to slaying in Queens woods
– MS-13 member pleads guilty to murdering Guatemalan before New York prosecutor
– Seven MS-13 members are accused of murdering two other gang members in a Texas prison
