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?