Singas: Indictments of 17 MS-13 members shows international reach

<p>Nassau officials announced the indictment of 17 alleged MS-13 members Thursday in an investigation that revealed how far-reaching the street gang has become. &nbsp;</p>

News 12 Staff

Jan 11, 2018, 7:04 PM

Updated 2,463 days ago

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Nassau officials announced the indictment of 17 alleged MS-13 members Thursday in an investigation that revealed how far-reaching the street gang has become.  
It included murder charges for two men accused of killing a teenager and dumping his body in Roosevelt.
David Sosa-Guevara, 26, and Victor Lopez, 29, are accused of luring 16-year-old Angel Soler into the woods in Roosevelt, killing him with a machete and then burying him in concrete last year. Sosa-Guevara was arrested and charged in the murder of Soler back in November after fleeing to Maryland.
The arrests were the result of a wider seven-month investigation that spanned from Long Island to New Jersey, Maryland, Virginia, Texas and overseas.
Authorities also say information gathered through wiretaps in the investigation prevented at least three homicides and brought to light new information about just how organized the international gang is.
“This is one of the biggest takedowns we've had in this office certainly, but more importantly, this investigation has given us information we didn't have before,” said Nassau District Attorney Madeline Singas.
During the investigation, authorities say MS-13 members in the U.S. and in El Salvador were making calls to fellow gang members in Mexico, Australia, France, Korea and Egypt to name a few.
Singas says they are hoping the takedown will essentially disable two of the major MS-13 cliques on Long Island – the Sailors and Hollywood. The arrests included the alleged local leaders of both, as well as the regional director of MS-13 Sailors clique for the entire east coast of the United States.