MS-13 Gang leader pleads to racketeering in D.C. area

Gang leader pleads to racketeering in D.C. area - Washington Times: "leader of a violent street gang tied to the attempted murder of two rival gang members and to the extortion of pimps trafficking prostitutes from Maryland into Virginia pleaded guilty Thursday to federal racketeering charges, according to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

ICE Special Agent in Charge John P. Torres, who heads the agency’s Homeland Security Investigations Division in Washington, D.C., said Jose Anibal Vigil, 21, of Falls Church, Va., pleaded guilty to charges involving being a member of Gangsters Locos Salvatrucha (GLS), an offshoot of Mara Salvatrucha, or MS-13, a racketeering enterprise.

He faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison at sentencing on May 6.

“MS-13 and the violent tactics they use to instill fear throughout our communities will not be tolerated,” Mr. Torres said. “As evidenced in today’s plea, MS-13 operates as a criminal enterprise using brutal acts to include attempted murder as a means to spread their control in our neighborhoods.”"

Posted in: MS-13