The MS-13 Gang

July thirteenth of two- thousand three the murder of a former MS-13 name Brenda Paz who was seventeen and pregnant. She was stabbed to death for being an informant or a “snitch” for supplying the FBI valuable gang information. Such as gun shipments and drug shipments. On June twenty-second of two- thousand eight, forty-eight year old Anthony Bologna was shot and killed by an MS-13 gang member named Edwin Ramos who was twenty one (Wikipedia: MS-Publicized crimes). MS-13 is a Latin American based gang, it is also the largest gang in the world, and is currently active in the United States in states such as: California, Washington D.C, Virginia, Maryland, New York, Massachusetts, North Carolina, and Texas. This gang is one of the most violent gangs

in the world (weebly).
The “MS” in MS-13 stands for Mara Salvatrucha, and the thirteen stands for amount of seconds that an initiate is beaten by other MS-13 members to be in the gang. The gang originated in Los Angeles, California in the eighties by immigrants coming over from El Salvador. The immigrants came over after the Central American civil wars. The gang was originally established to protect the Salvadorian immigrants from other gangs in Los Angeles (Wiki: MS13 origins). The gang recruited orphans, families, male, females, and children. Once you were in, you were a member for life. Eventually the gang would become the most dominate gang in the world.
The MS-13 gang is involved in all criminal aspects and activities.

These activities include drug trafficking, human trafficking, robberies, larceny, prostitution, illegal immigration, murder, assault and battery, kidnapping, and weapon trafficking (weebly). On December twenty-third of two- thousand four the most widely known MS-13 affiliated crime. When a transportation bus was ran down and was widely sprayed with assault rifles. Twenty- eight people were killed and fourteen people were injured. The gang did this to retaliate against the Honduran government for reviving the death penalty (wiki: MS13 publicized crimes). These are just a few of the crimes that were committed by MS-13 gang members that were made public not mentioning the ones that were not

publicized.
Brenda Paz was a former Mara Salvatrucha gang member, who decided to get out. However due to the lifetime membership that applies when you are initiated. Paz, who was seventeen and pregnant with her first child, left the gang and decided to seek protection from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, in exchange for protection she had to give valuable information on the MS-13 gang. Information that included: the types of firearms and where they were coming from, drug information, information that led to arrest of MS-13 members. Paz threw a party and used the money that the FBI was giving her to buy the alcohol and she invited some of her friends from the MS-13 gang. She was later found stabbed to death near a creek. The man who was founded guilty for committing the murder, is now serving life in prison. His name is Ismael Cisneros, he called himself a friend of Brenda Paz. He gave a televised interview to 60 minutes television show. He said he stabbed her numerous times, so that she suffered a painful death. “I wish I could have saved her from suffering.” Cisneros tells 60 minutes. “She was my friend, a home boy, a gang member.” He says in the segment of the showthat you can view on YouTube. He also stated that he and another member of the Mara Salvatrucha gang stabbed her thirteen times. He mentioned that the gang is not properly taught how to stab and kill someone on the first try. “I did not want her to suffer.” He states. He also states that he knew she was pregnant, and that knowing that still hurts him and haunts him to this very day. He also explains the infamous three dot tattoo that Mara Salvatrucha gang members have. It stands for the places that the MS-13 gang can lead you to the hospital, jail, or the cemetery. He says that when you join the gang you have a set of rules, and when a gang member breaks those rules. They get together and decide if the rule breaker should die or not. They hold an investigation if the accusations are true of the gang member breaking the rules. Other members of the gang investigate of the accusations are true. Then a meeting is held to discuss the consequences. In this case seventeen year old Brenda Paz was founded guilty, and MS-13 order the hit on her. “You live for you God, You live for your mother, and you die for your gang.” Brenda Paz stated to the camera. All information came from the 60 minutes episode on the MS-13 gang.
The Mara Salvatrucha gang became so violent and so large that the FBI and other agencies around the world declared them a criminal threat.

Thus creating a task force to take down the gang. Attorney general Jeff Sessions declared the gang as priority due to the massive scale and violence shown by the street gang. “They will now be targeting the gang with a renewed and sharpened focus” (Washington Times). Before the MS-13 Task Force was only able to access case that involved drugs or money laundering, now with the gang being designated as priority. The MS-13 Task Force can now get involved in numerous cases such as murder, firearms violations, frauds, etc (Washington Times). The MS-13 Gang Task Force director says that the gang has increased the level of gang violence. He states that the gang is about respect and power. “If you do not respect the gang they retaliate with violence” he states to FOX News, which you can view on YouTube. When asked about how and where do they recruit people, he says how the go after kids in Latino communities, immigrant communities, and minors. He says that when the gang recruiters approach these children they exploit their issues with families. “We are not going to be able to arrest ourselves out of this problems, there is too many. We will need to set up programs that prevent these kids from joining this gang.” He states when asked about how to deal with the

problem.
Former Mara Salvatrucha gang members describe their years in the gang. One member is describes his initiation into the gang. He says he was in the park at night when the gang approached him and punched and kicked him all over his body. Six members beat him while the seventh counted the time in the background. He was an orphan from Guatemala, both parents died from cancer. “They find your weakness and they exploit it.” He says to the camera. They supplied girls, alcohol, and people that felt like family. Which he says is what he needed. He says the gang used him as a man to send a message, “hurting people made me feel invincible.” He says. He also states that stabbing and shooting others became a normal thing for him. He mentions one of their intimidations tactics. “If a father doesn’t want to cooperate with us. We will do something to his family. Beat his son, rape his daughter, or his wife or both.” He states. “I never raped anyone, but others did. If a gang member seen a girl he liked, he would claim her has property.” A former hitman from MS-13 left the gang and had a sit down conversation with Fox News. “I joined when I was fourteen, I was a soldier, a triggerman. I was fifth-teen years old when I first killed.” He said he killed a sales man whom as an informant for the police. When asked how he killed him. He stated that he stabbed him to death, and that he had to follow the rules or he would die too. The interviewer asked how many people he had killed, he only says “quite a few, and some were police, some were rival gangs, some were friends, and some were relatives.” He listed the meaning of tattoos. “It is pride, it comes from killing, promotion, where I am from.” He also gave away how the Mara Salvatrucha gang made money. “We made our money terrorizing others, selling drugs, owning business, killing rivals, prostitution, and even car trafficking.” The interviewer asked if he made money. The former MS-13 member responded with no. He was also asked he had ever been into the United States, he responded with no and that he did not want to go. “It is very easy to get in, there are always people in contact with someone to get you in.” He answered when asked how MS-13 members got into the United States.
The Mara Salvatrucha gang is the most violent and largest gang in the world. They are continuously growing. The stories that are told from former gang members are stories of killing, death. One member even said joining the gang will wipe out your life, it is the saddest thing you can do. MS-13 has no remorse on rivals, their own members, and civilians. The Task Force continues to put a stop to the MS-13 gang and its operation. The gang as many members behind bars in federal prisons around the world, still preform operations behind bars. Some would say that the gang’s highest leaders are behind bars calling the shots. Some say the gang’s leader is someone named “Rooster.” Some say that the gang’s highest leader was killed by another member so that the member could have full control. These may be secrets that we never find out. Will the task force ever take down the MS-13 gang?