NEW YORK—New charges were brought against 11 members of the MS-13 street gang, also known as La Mara Salvatrucha, on Friday, announced the U.S. District Attorney’s office.
“For years, members of the MS-13 street gang have terrorized communities across Long Island. As charged in this new indictment, the defendants cut a swath of terror and wanton violence, victimizing innocent citizens across Suffolk County,” U.S. Attorney Lynch said in a release.
A 50-count indictment charged the members with multiple murders, attempted murders, assaults, armed robberies, and firearms and conspiracy offenses superseding previous charges. The charges have added five new defendants and additional crimes committed from back to 2009. The new defendants are Edwin Acosta-Martinez, Edwin Hernandez, Mario Rodriguez-Chinchilla, Walter Velasquez-Cruz, and a fifth individual whose identity was not revealed.
Ten of the defendants were in custody and scheduled for a formal reading of the complaint Friday before U.S. District Judge Joseph Bianco.
Each member faces a maximum sentence of life in prison if convicted, and the five defendants previously facing charges now face mandatory life in prison and possibly the death penalty for new indictments linking them to multiple murders.
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