Four illegal immigrants, who went on a year-long killing spree were charged this week in federal court, are members of the notorious MS-13 gang, according to police officers in Las Vegas.
The latest court case involves four individuals who are both illegal immigrants and members of the gang, according to law enforcement officials.
The individuals were charged late on Tuesday in connection with the kidnapping and murder of a rival gang member found on federal property in southern Nevada.
The charged persons are all nationals of El Salvador, the origin of MS-13.
They are Josue Diaz-Orellana, 22, Luis Reyes-Castillo, also known as “Molesto,” 24, David Perez-Manchame, also known as “Herbi,” and “Walter Melendez,” 19, and Miguel Torres-Escobar, 20.
Officials confirmed the men are all illegal immigrants.
Investigators said while investigating the death of rival gang member Arquimidez Sandavol-Martinez, they found fired cartridges marked “Blazer” and “FC.”
Officers learned that he was last seen on Jan. 21 at a club in Las Vegas. Police also obtained cell phone records indicating that Diaz-Orellana’s cellphone was used in that area and later used in the area where the body was found.
They said Perez-Manchame and the victim were exchanging angry looks, likely because of a possible relationship between Perez-Manchame’s girlfriend and the victim. The men persuaded Sandoval-Martinez to ride in a truck with them to the desert, telling him it would be a good place to see the lights of the city.
“After arriving at a remote area in the desert, the men removed Sandoval-Martinez from the vehicle and walked him away from the roadway,” the complaint states. “Reyes-Castillo forced Sandoval-Martinez to kneel and take off his shirt. After he removed his shirt, the men noticed a tattoo on his shoulder that they believed signified his association with their rival gang, 18th Street.”
Reyes-Castillo stabbed the victim while holding a gun to his head and fired when he tried to run. The four men then chopped his body up.
On March 2, officers stopped a vehicle with the four men in it and discovered a large butcher knife, a baseball hat with a bloodstain on it, and three 9mm handguns.
Towery, 23, was last seen on Feb. 9 leaving his friend’s house in Las Vegas to walk home, which would take around 10 minutes, but he vanished.
“Unfortunately, the body had been out there for some time [and] was partially decomposing,” LVMPD Officer Larry Hadfield said. “We couldn’t identify him out at the scene based on anything he had on him.” Investigators were later able to determine the murder occurred at the scene and were able to link the defendants to the murder.
Fox said the gang has cleaned up their look a little since the ‘90s, often forgoing visible signs of membership to avoid police scrutiny.
