This Is For The Mara Salvatrucha is the first non-fiction narrative about the MS-13. It tells the story of Brenda Paz, a young street gang member who betrayed her gang and became an informant, revealing a previously unknown threat across America.

by Samuel Logan

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Posts Tagged ‘Charlotte’

A conservative estimate?

Tuesday, July 28th, 2009

I’ve been collecting news stories that illustrate the presence of the MS-13 across the country. I’d like to highlight here a couple places where we don’t normally expect them to be a problem or a threat.

One story, published on 27 July by the Providence Journal-Bulletin in RI, highlights the growing number of gang members in an area known as Cranston, where on 19 May a gunman fired 12 shots and struck a “former member” of the Original Crips street gang, an innocent bystander, and a barber.

Fortunately the police chief in the area has gone public about a gang problem and is proactive about stopping it.

Newsday (NY), on 26 July, ran a story about a man from Ghana, a “laid-back guy” would was allegedly killed by a member of the MS-13 in Central Islip. This story goes on to recount two other MS-13 related murders.

In Charlotte, where the MS-13 has been growing at a steady pace, US Representative Sue Myrick (NC-09) announced on 15 July that the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) branch of the Dept. of Homeland Security will establish a full-time gang unit in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg area. So far, 70 “transnational gang members” have been arrested in the Charlotte area in 2009.

And in Jefferson, IN, investigators arrested on 24 July three men with “possible ties” to the MS-13. Drugs, a stolen handgun, an assault rifle, forged documents, and MS-13 paraphernalia were all removed from the residence, along with the three suspects.

There are many, many more such stories. Together, they paint a picture of the MS-13’s presence in corners of this country that most of us have never heard of. So when I think about the numbers, that the MS-13 is present in at least 42 states and 1,200 cities, I have to wonder: Is this a conservative estimate?

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QnA, part III

Wednesday, July 8th, 2009

Q: How is the MS-13 structured?

A: The MS-13 is a network with numerous, interlinked groups spread across 42 states and over 1,200 cities in the United States. These groups, called “cliques”, are loosely organized with one older leader, called the primera palabra or “first word”, a secretary, a treasurer, and, often times, a number of members who specialize in stealing cars, smuggling illegal immigrants, or murder.

When I interviewed the MS-13 member Veto, a “first word” in Brenda’s clique in Texas, he was serving time in a maximum-security prison. He told me of his goal to expand the MS-13 across Texas, in Dallas, Houston, San Antonio, and Brownsville. With his cliques in place, he planned to operate a human smuggling ring, bringing Salvadorians through Mexico and up to Brownsville before sending them to Los Angeles and Northern Virginia. His contacts in El Salvador would have also facilitated this process.

The MS-13 is also a transnational gang, with close ties to thousands of members who live in El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Mexico. From prison cells near San Salvador, senior MS-13 gang members can make one phone call and the next day someone in Charlotte, North Carolina will be found dead, stabbed to death. Such an extension of power - across nations - is part of what makes the MS-13 one of the most dangerous street gangs in America.

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