Eleven MS-13 Members Charged with Murders, Attempted Murders, Assaults, and Armed Robberies in Superseding Indictments

New Charges Include the September 2009 Slaying of a Grocery Store Employee During an Armed Robbery

Earlier today, a 50-count second superseding indictment was unsealed at the United States Courthouse in Central Islip, New York, charging 11 members and associates of La Mara Salvatrucha, also known as the MS-13 street gang, with multiple murders, attempted murders, assaults with dangerous weapons, armed robberies, and related firearms and conspiracy offenses. The charges were announced by Loretta E. Lynch, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, and Mary Galligan, Acting Assistant Director in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office.

Ten of the defendants are in custody and are scheduled to be arraigned on this superseding indictment at 11:00 a.m. today before United States District Judge Joseph F. Bianco. This indictment adds five new defendants—Edwin Acosta-Martinez, Edwin Hernandez, Mario Rodriguez-Chinchilla, Walter Velasquez-Cruz, and a fifth individual whose identity remains under seal at this time (the “co-defendant”)—and charges relating to the September 12, 2009 armed robbery of Los Hermanos Grocery and the murder of 57 year-old Miguel Peralta in Brentwood, New York; the October 23, 2011 attempted murder of two suspected rival gang members in Central Islip, New York; and seven additional armed robberies, which took place in Suffolk County between December 2009 and February 2012. Specifically:

■Joyser Velasquez, Francisco Ponce and the co-defendant are charged with the armed robbery of Los Hermanos Grocery and the murder of Miguel Peralta. Asdetailed in court filings, Velasquez and the co-defendant, armed with handguns, entered the store, while Ponce waited as the getaway driver. Peralta, who was sweeping a storeroom in the back of the store, heard the commotion, entered the front of the store, and came face to face with Velasquez, who shot him once in the side. Peralta then ran down an aisle where he was confronted by the co-defendant, who shot him in the head. The robbers then rifled through the cash register, took cash and checks, and fled. Velasquez, Ponce, and the co-defendant are also charged with several other armed robberies, including the December 27, 2009 armed robbery of a Burger King restaurant in Bay Shore.

■Hernandez is charged with two attempted murders and assaults with dangerous weapons, which took place on October 23, 2011, on Clift Street in Central Islip. That evening, Hernandez, who was a new member of the Brentwood clique of the MS-13, was directed to murder a rival gang member in order to gain full status within the clique. Hernandez and another MS-13 member armed themselves with a .22 caliber semi-automatic handgun and 9mm semi-automatic handgun and drove around Central Islip looking for rival gang members. On Clift Street, Hernandez and the other MS-13 member observed a group of African-Americans whom they believed were members of the Bloods street gang. Hernandez and the other MS-13 member approached the group and opened fire. Two men were struck and were subsequently transported to local hospitals. Both victims survived.

■Acosta-Martinez, Rodriguez-Chinchilla, and Velasquez-Cruz are charged in connection with a series of robberies that took place in Suffolk County between January and February 2012, including: the armed robberies of the Lempa Deli in Central Islip on January 4, 2012; the Off the Track Quick Mart in Babylon on January 6, 2012; the Iglesia Universal Church in Brentwood on January 11, 2012; the Chapi Deli in Huntington Station on January 26, 2012; the Mi Tierrita restaurant in Brentwood on February 13, 2012; and the Health-Mart Pharmacy in Bay Shore on February 28, 2012.

The indictment announced today includes the charges from the underlying indictments against Jose Alvarenga, Hector Torres, Jonathan Ayala, Edwin Molina, Ponce, and Velasquez, relating to: a July 24, 2008 murder conspiracy and assault with a dangerous weapon in Timberline Park in Brentwood; the February 15, 2009 armed robbery of Pollo Campero restaurant in Lindenhurst; the October 4, 2009 murder of Luis Castro in Huntington; the November 20, 2009 murder of Christopher Hamilton in Brentwood; the December 19, 2009 armed robbery of Wilson Express Corp., a check cashing and money transfer business in Patchogue; a January 2010 conspiracy to rob a McDonald’s restaurant in Smithtown; the August 31, 2010 murder of Rigoberto Gomez in Brentwood; the September 2010 murder of Bayron Vasquez-Nunez in Brentwood; and January 2012 firearms charges.

If convicted, each defendant faces a maximum sentence of life in prison. In addition, Alvarenga, Ponce, Torres, Velasquez, Molina, and the co-defendant each face mandatory life in prison or possibly the death penalty.

“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,” stated United States Attorney Lynch. “This office and the FBI’s Long Island Gang Task Force will continue to prioritize combating gang violence on Long Island.”

FBI Acting Assistant Director in Charge Galligan stated, “The allegations in the new indictment confirm the ongoing threat posed by MS-13. Despite a decade’s extraordinary effort by the Long Island Gang Task Force and the U.S. Attorney’s Office, and the hundreds of convictions already obtained, MS-13 members continue to commit murder and mayhem seemingly without regard for human life. The new charges include the cold-blooded murder of an innocent grocery store employee during one of several violent armed robberies in Suffolk County. So long as MS-13 and other gangs pose a threat to public safety, the efforts of the FBI and the task force will persist.”

The government’s case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys John J. Durham, Raymond A. Tierney, and Carrie N. Capwell.

The charges announced today are the latest in a series of indictments by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York against members of the MS-13, a violent international street gang. Over the past decade, more than 200 MS-13 members, including the leaders of a number of the MS-13 cliques on Long Island, have been arrested and convicted on federal felony charges in this district, including federal racketeering and murder charges. These prosecutions are the result of investigations led by the FBI’s Long Island Gang Task Force, comprising agents and officers of the FBI, Nassau County Police Department, Nassau County Sheriff’s Department, the United States Department of Homeland Security-Homeland Security Investigations, the Suffolk County Sheriff’s Department, and the Suffolk County Probation Department. U.S. Attorney Lynch commended the detectives from the Suffolk County Police Department, who, until recently, were assigned to the task force, for their tireless efforts and invaluable contributions to this prosecution.

The charges are merely allegations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

Defendants:

EDWIN ACOSTA-MARTINEZ (a/k/a “Scarface” and “Alejandro”)

Age: 23

JOSE ALVARENGA (a/k/a “Fosforo”)

Age: 22

JONATHAN AYALA (a/k/a “Bang Bang,” “Bam Bam,” and “Duende”)

Age: 19

EDWIN HERNANDEZ (a/k/a “Masacre” and “Scooby”)

Age: 21

EDWIN MOLINA (a/k/a “Trece”)

Age: 24

FRANCISCO PONCE (a/k/a “Spoiler”)

Age: 30

MARIO RODRIGUEZ-CHINCHILLA

Age: 24

HECTOR TORRES (a/k/a “Smiley”)

Age: 21

JOYSER VELASQUEZ (a/k/a “Baby Boy”)

Age: 28

WALTER VELASQUEZ-CRUZ (a/k/a “Wilmer”)

Age: 27

Huge Seizure of Counterfeit Cell Phones at JFK Airport

Jamaica, N.Y. – An inspection by CBP officers at New York’s JFK International Airport in January, led to an investigation that resulted in the arrest of three men and the seizure of nearly $2 million in counterfeit cell phones. 

The investigation, dubbed “Operation: Long Distance Haul” was initiated after the officers discovered a shipment of cell phones shipped loose in cardboard boxes with no packaging. Officers suspected they might be counterfeit. Samples were sent to the actual manufacturers including Motorola, HTC and Casio who confirmed they were not authentic.

Agents from Homeland Security Investigations partnered with detectives from the Nassau County Police Department and conducted surveillance on two warehouses used to process the fake phones. Warrants were issued and 32,000 counterfeit phones were discovered in two locations. Safety deposit boxes containing nearly $500,000 were also seized.

“The men and women of CBP protect our nation’s economy, the safety of its people, and our national security against the harm of counterfeit and pirated goods. We are very proud to have partnered with HSI and the Nassau County Police Department to detect and seize these counterfeit cell phones, leading to the apprehension of these conspirators,” said Mr. Robert E. Perez, Director, Field Operations New York.

All three men are being charged with Trademark Counterfeiting in the Second Degree and all the defendants face four years in prison, if convicted. The case will be prosecuted by the Office of the District Attorney, Nassau County.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection is the unified border agency within the Department of Homeland Security charged with the management, control and protection of our nation's borders at and between official ports of entry. CBP is charged with keeping terrorists and terrorist weapons out of the country while enforcing hundreds of U.S. laws.

Twenty Alleged Members of a Heroin Trafficking Organization Indicted on Long Island

Indictment Charges the Perez Organization Distributed Heroin Throughout Queens, Nassau, and Suffolk Counties; Stash Houses Located in Brooklyn, Queens, and Roosevelt, New York

An indictment was unsealed today in federal court in Central Islip, New York, charging 20 members of the Perez Organization, an alleged district-wide drug trafficking ring, with conspiracy to distribute heroin. According to the indictment and a detention letter filed by the government, the organization’s leadership was centralized in Woodhaven, Queens, with distribution networks in Nassau and Suffolk counties and a storage facility in Brooklyn. The organization’s members were allegedly responsible for distributing over 20 kilograms of heroin, with a street value of at least $2.75 million, to drug dealers in Long Island and Queens during the past nine months. The defendants were arrested earlier today, and their arraignments are scheduled this afternoon before United States Magistrate Judge Gary R. Brown, at the United States Courthouse, 100 Federal Plaza, Central Islip, New York.

The charges were announced by Loretta E. Lynch, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York; Janice K. Fedarcyk, assistant director in charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office; and Thomas V. Dale, commissioner, Nassau County Police Department.

The indictment and arrests are the product of a nine-month joint investigation (“Operation County Connection”) by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Nassau County Police Department (NCPD), with assistance from the Suffolk County Police Department, the New York City Police Department, and the U.S. Marshals Service, Eastern District of New York. The investigation was initiated, in part, in response to the increased rate of heroin use on Long Island.

During the course of the investigation, law enforcement agents monitored hundreds of hours of court-ordered wiretaps, which documented numerous purchases and sales of heroin by the defendants, and conducted numerous controlled purchases of heroin. During the investigation, more than 5,400 individual doses of heroin were recovered from members of the Perez Organization, which were otherwise destined to reach the streets of communities in this district. The agents also executed search warrants at four heroin storage locations in Queens, Brooklyn, and Roosevelt, New York, resulting in the seizure of, among other things, heroin with a street value of over $30,000 and thousands of dollars in cash.

The government’s investigation exposed the depth and breadth of heroin trafficking activity in the Eastern District of New York, as the Perez Organization’s alleged reach stretched across community and demographic boundaries. Among the defendants charged in this case are Roland Stern, a retired Suffolk County Marine Bureau Police Officer, and his daughter Corey Stern; Tina and Matthew Catrini, a married couple; Kathryn Pappas, a college student; and Dana Sollecito, who allegedly sold heroin from the parking lot of the “Corner Gallery,” her family’s restaurant in Massapequa.

“The charges and arrests announced today have ended the activities of an alleged heroin distribution organization whose members were drawn from a variety of backgrounds but were united by common cause—profiting personally while seriously endangering the lives of so many residents in our communities,” stated United States Attorney Lynch. “This office is committed to using coordinated law enforcement techniques to rid our streets and neighborhoods from the scourge of heroin and other controlled substances. We will not end this pursuit until our mission is accomplished.” Ms. Lynch expressed her grateful appreciation to each of the agencies that participated in the investigation leading to today’s arrests and added that the investigation is continuing.

FBI Assistant Director in Charge Janice K. Fedarcyk stated, “As alleged in the indictment, the Perez Organization was responsible for a significant portion of the heroin distributed on Long Island. Heroin use among suburban teens is alarmingly popular, and today’s heroin is more potent and less expensive than ever. A potentially lethal dose can be purchased for about the cost of a pack of cigarettes or a six-pack of beer. The FBI and our partners are determined to stem the flow of a poison responsible for far too many needless deaths. ‘Operation County Connection’ is the new task force’s first major investigation to result in charges and arrests, but it will hardly be the last.”

Nassau County Police Commissioner Dale stated, “This operation highlights how successful law enforcement can be working in collaboration. We as a team have taken down an alleged major heroin ring that was plaguing Nassau County. Heroin is a significant concern here on Long Island. The NCPD has a three-prong approach for dealing with this issue: prevention, redirection, and enforcement. We could not have achieved these enforcement results without the assistance of our partners. I would like to thank the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the New York City Police Department, the Suffolk County Police Department, and the U.S. Marshals Service for all their hard work and dedication over the last nine months.”

If convicted of the heroin distribution conspiracy charge, each of the defendants faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years and a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.

The charges contained in the indictment are merely allegations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. The government’s case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Charles N. Rose and Licha M. Nyiendo.

Defendants:

JOSE PEREZ, also known as “Jay,” “Ule,” and “Fat Boy”

Age: 26

NORBERTO RODRIGUEZ, also known as “JR”

Age: 27

WILFRED CASTILLO, also known as “E” and “EZ”

Age: 26

JOSE TAVERAS, also known as “Junior”

Age: 38

RAFAEL PICHARDO, also known as “Ralphy”

Age: 30

WILLIAM BAEZ, also known as “Billy”

Age: 30

EDWIN ADAMES

Age: 33

LEONARDO LOPEZ, also known as “Leo”

Age: 25

SEAN BRUNETTE, also known as “White Boy”

Age: 22

ANDERSON TAVERAS, also known as “Andy”

Age: 22

KENNETH SUAREZ, also known as “Kenny”

Age: 33

ERIC SUAREZ

Age: 28

DANA SOLLECITO

Age: 23

TINA CATRINI, also known as “Tina Bonghi”

Age: 29

MATTHEW CATRINI

Age: 24

JOSEPHINE JAVIS, also known as “Josephina”

Age: 50

ROLAND STERN, also known as “Pops”

Age: 68

COREY STERN

Age: 37

KATHRYN PAPPAS

Age: 21

FELIX VARGAS, also known as “Pun” and “Bori”

Age: 33

Five Members of the MS-13 Street Gang Indicted for Murder, Conspiracy, Assault, and Armed Robbery

Charges Include the November 2009 Murder of 15-Year-Old Christopher Hamilton and the August 2010 Obstruction of Justice Murder of Rigoberto Gomez

EARLIER TODAY, A —count indictment was unsealed at the U.S. Courthouse in Central Islip, New York, charging five members of La Mara Salvatrucha street gang (the MS-13) with murder in aid of racketeering, assault with a dangerous weapon in aid of racketeering, armed robberies, firearms offenses, and related conspiracy charges.1 Two of the defendants, Jose Alvarenga, also known as “Fosforo,” and Hector Torres, also known as “Smiley,” are charged with the murder of 15-year-old Christopher Hamilton in 2009, and the murder of Rigoberto Gomez in 2010, both in Brentwood, New York. All five defendants are in custody. Alvarenga and Torres will be arraigned later today before United States District Judge Joseph F. Bianco, and the other three defendants will be arraigned later this week. When Torres was arrested, law enforcement authorities recovered a defaced 9mm semi-automatic handgun, 9mm ammunition, .22 caliber ammunition and 12 gauge shotgun shells.

The charges were announced by Loretta E. Lynch, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York; Janice K. Fedarcyk, Assistant Director in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office; and Edward Webber, Acting Commissioner of the Suffolk County Police Department.

As detailed in the indictment and the government’s detention letter filed earlier today, on November 20, 2009, Alvarenga, the leader of the Brentwood Locos Salvatruchas (BLS) clique of MS-13, ordered several MS-13 gang members to attack suspected rival gang members at a house party on American Boulevard in Brentwood. After arming the MS-13 members with a .22 caliber rifle and a semi-automatic handgun from the BLS clique’s arsenal, Alvarenga led them the American Boulevard house. Minutes after arriving, at least three rifle shots were fired by gang members into a crowd of people outside the house—one of them striking Christopher Hamilton in the temple, killing him. Alvarenga is the fifth MS-13 member involved in the Hamilton murder to be charged federally, including the shooter who was a juvenile at the time of the murder and whose case remains under seal.

The indictment and detention letter also allege that in August 2010, members of the Sailors clique of the MS-13 suspected that MS-13 member Rigoberto Gomez was cooperating with local law enforcement. As a result, the Sailors put a “green light” on Gomez, authorizing other MS-13 members to kill Gomez on sight. In the early morning hours of August 31, 2010, defendant Hector Torres, then second in command of the BLS clique, together with a Sailors clique member, who has also been charged federally, spotted Gomez as they drove through Brentwood. They lured Gomez into the car, inviting him to smoke marijuana with them at the nearby Freeman Avenue Park. After exiting the car, Torres stepped behind Gomez and fired a bullet from a .357 caliber revolver into the back of Gomez’s head, and fired a second shot into Gomez’s head after the victim fell to the ground. Torres then handed the gun to the other MS-13 member, who fired a third shot into Gomez’s head.

The indictment also charges Alvarenga and Francisco Ponce, also known as “Spoiler,” with a non-fatal shooting that took place on July 24, 2008, in Timberline Park in Brentwood; Ponce, Freddy Fuentes-Gonzalez, also known as “Pitufo,” and Joyser Velasquez, also known as “Baby Boy,” with the February 15, 2009, conspiracy and armed robbery of the Pollo Campero restaurant in Lindenhurst, New York; Ponce and Velasquez with the December 19, 2009, conspiracy and armed robbery of the Wilson Express Corp., a check-cashing and money transfer business in Patchogue, New York; and Velasquez with a January 20, 2010, conspiracy to rob a McDonald’s restaurant in Smithtown, New York.

If convicted, each defendant faces a maximum sentence of life in prison. In addition, Alvarenga and Torres, who are charged with the Hamilton and Gomez murders, respectively, each face mandatory life in prison, or the death penalty.

“The MS-13 thrives on violence—violence directed at suspected rivals, as in the Hamilton murder and Timberline Park shooting, violence against its own members, as demonstrated in the Gomez murder, and violence directed at innocent, hard-working Long Islanders, as demonstrated in the armed robberies charged in this indictment,” stated United States Attorney Lynch. “Today we mark the latest product of the tenacious investigations conducted by the FBI’s Long Island Gang Task Force.” Ms. Lynch extended her grateful appreciation to the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office for its assistance in this case.

FBI Assistant Director in Charge Fedarcyk stated, “The indictment illustrates two ongoing themes. MS-13 continues to use violence, including cold-blooded murder, to intimidate rivals and enforce discipline within its own ranks. Charges include the point-blank execution of an MS-13 member suspected of cooperating. And, the FBI and the Long Island Gang Task Force will continue to make cases and arrest MS-13 leaders and members.”

“Gangs are like a cancer on our communities, and unless we deal with them directly, effectively and immediately they will continue to grow,” said Suffolk County Police Department Acting Commissioner Webber. “We will steadfastly work with our local and federal law enforcement partners to put an end to their violent criminal acts.”

The government’s case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys John J. Durham and Raymond A. Tierney.

The charges announced today are the latest in a series of indictments by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York against members of the MS-13, a violent international street gang. Over the past decade, more than 150 MS-13 members, including the leaders of a number of the MS-13 cliques on Long Island, have been arrested and convicted on federal felony charges in this district, including federal racketeering and murder charges. These prosecutions are the result of investigations led by the FBI’s Long Island Gang Task Force, comprising agents and officers of the FBI, Suffolk County Police Department, Nassau County Police Department, Nassau County Sheriff’s Department, the United States Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations, the Suffolk County Sheriff’s Department and the Suffolk County Probation Department.

The Defendants:

JOSE ALVARENGA (a/k/a “Fosforo”) Age: 22
FREDDY FUENTES-GONZALEZ (a/k/a “Pitufo”) Age: 28
FRANCISCO PONCE (a/k/a “Spoiler”) Age: 29
HECTOR TORRES (a/k/a “Smiley”) Age: 20
JOYSER VELASQUEZ (a/k/a “Baby Boy”) Age: 27

1 The charges contained in the indictment are merely allegations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

MS-13 Street Gang Member Sentenced to 35 Years’ Imprisonment for Murder

Earlier today, Edwin Henriquez, also known as “Joker,” a member of the La Mara Salvatrucha (“MS-13”) street gang on Long Island, was sentenced to 35 years' imprisonment for the September 19, 2004, murder of 16-year-old fellow MS-13 member Olivia Melendez Mendoza (“Melendez”) in Old Westbury, New York. The sentence was imposed pursuant to Henriquez’s November 3, 2010, guilty plea. The proceeding was held before Senior United States District Judge Leonard D. Wexler at the United States Courthouse in Central Islip, New York.

The sentence was announced by Loretta E. Lynch, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, Janice K. Fedarcyk, Assistant Director-in-Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office, and James T. Hayes, Jr., Special Agent-in-Charge, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), New York Field Office.

According to his plea allocution and documents previously filed in the case, Henriquez and other Long Island MS-13 members decided to kill Melendez because they believed that she was not abiding by the gang’s rules. Pursuant to their plan, Henriquez lured Melendez to a wooded area in Old Westbury where he shot her once in the back of the head. On April 12, 2011, Judge Wexler sentenced MS-13 member Jose Recinos, also known as “Psycho” and “Little Psycho,” to 20 years' imprisonment for aiding and abetting Henriquez in the murder.

“This sentence makes clear that gang members will pay a heavy price for such cold, calculated acts of violence,” stated United States Attorney Lynch. “Eliminating gang violence continues to be a priority of this Office and the Justice Department.” Ms. Lynch praised the work of the FBI Long Island Gang Task Force,1 which investigated the case. FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge Fedarcyk stated, “Gangs resort to violence for a variety of reasons, not one of them morally defensible. In this case, as he admitted, Henriquez cold-bloodedly executed a young woman for violating MS-13 rules. For violating the rule of law, he will spend decades in prison.”

“This sentencing sends a clear message to gang members: we will deal strongly with those who ignore our laws and place our neighborhoods at risk,” said ICE/HSI Special Agent-in- Charge Hayes. “Gang violence and all of its accompanying destructive conduct will not be tolerated.”

The MS-13 is a violent international street gang comprised primarily of immigrants from El Salvador, Honduras, and Guatemala. With several chapters, which members refer to as “cliques,” MS-13 is the largest street gang on Long Island. The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York has obtained convictions against more than 120 MS-13 members, including ten clique leaders, for felony offenses, including racketeering, murder, assault, firearm possession, and narcotics trafficking.

The government’s case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Richard P. Donoghue, James McGovern, Raymond Tierney, and John Durham.

The Defendant:

EDWIN HENRIQUEZ, also known as “Joker” Age: 26

1 The FBI Long Island Gang Task Force is comprised of law enforcement officers from the FBI, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), New York State Police, Nassau County Police Department, Suffolk County Police Department, Hempstead Village Police Department, the Nassau County Department of Corrections, and the Suffolk County Department of Corrections.