Source: Office of United States Attorneys
LOS ANGELES – Three members of the Mara Salvatrucha-13 (MS-13) transnational street gang – one of them an illegal alien from El Salvador – have been charged in federal criminal complaints with murdering a former MS-13 member earlier this year who was cooperating with law enforcement on a federal racketeering and methamphetamine trafficking case, the Justice Department announced today.
Dennis Anaya Urias, 26, of South Los Angeles, and Grevil Zelaya Santiago, 25, of South Los Angeles, are charged via federal complaint with murder in aid of racketeering, a felony that carries a mandatory sentence of life in federal prison and a possible death sentence.
Roberto Carlos Aguilar, 30, of South Los Angeles, is charged in a separate federal criminal complaint with murder in aid of racketeering. Aguilar is an illegal alien from El Salvador. Urias is a legal permanent resident, and Santiago has a pending visa application.
All three defendants made their initial appearances late Thursday in United States District Court in downtown Los Angeles. A federal magistrate judge ordered them jailed without bond and scheduled their arraignments for June 3.
According to affidavits filed with the complaints, Urias and Santiago shot the victim to death at a grocery store in South Los Angeles on February 18. The victim’s status as a government cooperator was well known by MS-13 and made the victim subject to a “green light” order that made him a target for murder by MS-13 members.
Approximately one hour before the victim’s death, he had what appeared to be a chance encounter with Aguilar inside the grocery store. Following that encounter, Aguilar set in motion a series of events that led to Urias and Santiago shooting and killing the victim.
During the evening of February 18, the victim made two telephone calls to authorities and said he was at a grocery store in South Los Angeles where MS-13 members had just tried to kill him. He said he had been talking with MS-13 members when a man whose face was covered approached and tried to shoot him, but the gun did not fire. At one point during the second telephone call, several gunshots were heard.
By murdering the victim, Aguilar, Urias and Santiago either avoided discipline or enhanced their status within MS-13, according to court documents.
A criminal complaint is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
The FBI and the Los Angeles Police Department are investigating these matters.
Assistant United States Attorney Shawn T. Andrews of the General Crimes Section is prosecuting these cases.
These cases are part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.