THE GEOGRAPHY OF – MS 13
MS 13
• MARA SALVATRUCHA 13
• ONE OF THE MOST VIOLENT, DANGEROUS GANGS IN
U.S
• ONE OF THE MOST ORGANIZED - HAS CLIQUES, OR
FACTIONS, LOCATED THROUGHOUT U.S
• IS UNIQUE  RETAINS IS TIES TO ITS EL SALVADOR
COUNTERPARTS
MS 13
• MS-13 WAS NAMED AFTER "LA MARA", A STREET IN
EL SALVADOR
• SALVATRUCHA – GUERRILLAS WHO FOUGHT IN THE
SALVADORAN CIVAL WAR
• "13TH STREET" IN LOS ANGELES (ALSO 13TH
LETTER OF THE ALPHABET IS M)
•
MS 13
• ORIGINAL MEMBERS WERE REFUGEES FROM THE
CIVIL WAR IN EL SALVADOR DURING THE 1980S;
MANY WERE FORMER SOLDIERS AND GUERRILLAS,
WELL TRAINED IN WEAPONS AND WARFARE
TACTICS – MOVED TO US AS REFUGEES
• YOUNG REFUGEES IN AREA WHERE THERE WERE
ALREADY MANY GANGS (18TH STREET GANG –
MEXICANS)
• SALVADORANS FORMED THEIR OWN GANG IN
RESPONSE TO NEED FOR PROTECTIONS OF
ALREADY EXISTING GANGS (SEOUL INTERNATIONAL
PARK)
• ACCORDING TO FOUNDING MEMBER (ERNESTO
“SMOKEY” MIRANDA TRAUMAS SUFFERED DURING
THE WAR HELPED MAKE THE GANG SO VIOLENT
• AFTER RODNEY KING VERDICT –RIOTS –
CALIFORNIA STARTING PASSING NEW ANTI-GANG
LAWS THAT LEAD TO LONGER PRISON SENTENCES
FOR GANG MEMBERS
•
• 1996 FEDERAL GOVERNMENT PASSED THE
“ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION REFORM AND
IMMIGRATION RESPONSIBILITY ACT” MADE
DEPORTATION GOVERNMENTS MOST IMPORTANT
STRATEGY FOR DEALING WITH GANGS
• PEOPLE WERE CITIZENS BUT NOT PERMANENT
RESIDENTS (IF SENTENCED TO MORE THAN A YEAR
IN PRISON) BE DEPORTED
• LIST OF CRIMES FOR DEPORTATION WAS ALSO
EXPANDED TO DRUNK DRIVING AND PETTY THEFT
•
• IN 1996 ~ 38,000 IMMIGRANTS WERE DEPORTS
AFTER COMMITTING A CRIME
• 2003 # TO ~ 80,000
• MANY DEPORTEES HAD LIVED IN US ALMOST THEIR
WHO LIVE (SOME SPOKE NO SPANISH)
• JOINED TOGETHER WITH “HOMEBOYS” WHO HAD
BEEN DEPORTED WITH THEM AND RECREATED LA’S
GANGS IN CENTRAL AMERICA
• OR ATTEMPTED TO RETURN TO US ILLEGALLY
• GANG PROBLEM SNOWBALLED
• EL SALVADOR WAS RIPE FOR DEVELOPMENT OF
GANGS
• AFTER CIVIL WAR – ARMY WAS REMOVED FROM
INTERNAL SECURITY DUTIES & CIVILIAN POLICE
FORCE WAS CREATED (NEEDED TIME TO BE
TRAINED AND BECOME EFFECTIVE)  CRIME GREW
• FAMILIES
• MANY ORPHANS AND STREET CHILDREN DUE TO
WAR
• YOUNG POPULATION (1/2 POPULATION IN 1998
UNDER 18 AND ¾ OF CHILDREN LIVING IN
POVERTY)
• FEW OPPORTUNITIES – WAR AND INTERNATIONAL
FREE MARKET BROUGHT A COLLAPSE OF THE
COFFEE ECONOMY
• URBANIZATION RAPID BUT NO JOBS (6.5%
UNEMPLOYMENT RATE)
• AVAILABILITY OF WEAPONS (AFTER WAR THEY ARE
EVERYWHERE)
• ~450,000 FIREARMS IN EL SALVADOR (NOT EVEN
HALF ARE LEGAL)
• WEAPONS ALLOWED MS13 TO BE INFLUENTIAL
(NOW MAJOR MARKET FOR THE GANG)
• SAVATRUCHAS DID NOT STAY IN EL SALVADOR BUT
IMMIGRATED BACK TO US (LEGALLY AND
ILLEGALLY)  FOR BETTER OPPORTUNITY AND
BETTER LIVES
• 90% OF DEPORTED GANG MEMBERS RETURN TO
THE US AS FAST AS THEY CAN
• BY 2005 MS13 STARTING TO SPREAD
THROUGHOUT US (WASHINGTON D.C., LONG
ISLAND, NORTHERN VIRGINIA, SUBURBAN MIDWEST
• GANG IS RETURNING MORE ORGANIZED AND
SOPHISTICATED, WITH BETTER WEAPONS,
COORDINATION, COMMUNICATION AMONG CLIQUES
• IN CENTRAL AMERICAN NATIONS THE RESPONSE TO
GANGS IS TO THROW MEMBERS IN JAIL
• JAIL OVERCROWDED (EL SALVADOR DOUBLED IN 5
YEARS)
• SERVE TO REINFORCE GANG CULTURE (FINISHING
SCHOOL) HELP TO ORGANIZE THE HIERARCHY OF
THE CLIQUES AND GANG
MS 13
• MS 13 INTERNATIONAL GANG WITH MEMBERS IN
WASHINGTON DC, OREGON, ALASKA, ARKANSAS,
TEXAS, NEVADA, UTAH, OKLAHOMA, ILLINOIS,
MICHIGAN, NEW YORK, MARYLAND, VIRGINIA,
GEORGIA, FLORIDA, CANADA, EL SALVADOR,
GUATEMALA, MEXICO, AND SEVERAL OTHER SOUTH
AMERICAN COUNTRIES
• BECOMING THE FIRST GANG TO BE CATEGORIZED
AS AN "ORGANIZED CRIME" ENTITY.
MS-13 presence – darkness indicates strength
MS 13
• MEMBERS SPORT NUMEROUS TATTOOS ON THEIR
BODIES AND FACES
• WEAR BLUE AND WHITE COLORS TAKEN FROM THE
EL SALVADORAN FLAG
•
• MS 13 TATTOO'S ARE GOTHIC WHICH MEANS
THEY ARE VERY DARK SPIRITED
• MANY MEMBERS HAVE 666 TATTED ON THEM
• TEARDROPS UNDER THEIR LEFT EYE
REPRESENT A SHOT OR A WOUNDED GANG
MEMBER & THOSE UNDER RIGHT EYE
REPRESENT THEIR COMBAT WITH THE RIVAL
GANGS
• THE FIST OF ONE OF
THE CONVICT SHOWS
TATTOOS OF A CLUB
AND A SPADE SYMBOL
OVER THE ‘M’ AND ‘S’
TO HIDE HIS
ASSOCIATION SINCE
DEPARTING FROM MS
13
THE WHOLE THING EARLIER
READ ‘GMSP’ ACROSS FOUR
FINGERS WHERE ‘G’ AND ‘P’
STOOD FOR HIS TERRITORY
GREENSPOINT. MS 13 GANG
TATTOOS REVEAL
SPECIALTIES OF GANG
MEMBERS
STACKING
• HOW THEY SPELL WHO IS IN THEIR GANG WITH
THEIR HANDS
• HOW THEY TELL OTHER GANG MEMBERS WHAT
GANG THEIR FROM AND WHO IS IN THEIR CLIQUE
• ALWAYS CHANGING AND DIFFERENT GANG SIGNS
CONTINUALLY EMERGE
STACKING
• HOW THEY SPELL WHO IS IN THEIR GANG WITH
THEIR HANDS
• HOW THEY TELL OTHER GANG MEMBERS WHAT
GANG THEIR FROM AND WHO IS IN THEIR CLIQUE
• ALWAYS CHANGING AND DIFFERENT GANG SIGNS
CONTINUALLY EMERGE
MS 13
• MEMBERSHIP IS ESTIMATED TO TOTAL OVER
100,000 WORLDWIDE
• MEMBERS RANGE IN AGE FROM 11 TO 40 YEARS
OLD
• INCREASE IN VIOLENT ACTIVITIES AND CARELESS
DISREGARD FOR THE LAW (THREATS AND ATTACKS
AGAINST LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICIALS ARE
COMMON) MADE THEM THE MOST FEARED GANG
IN THE UNITED STATES
• US
MS 13
• MS-13 CRIMINAL ACTIVITIES INCLUDE DRUG
SMUGGLING, GUN RUNNING, PEOPLE SMUGGLING,
HUMAN TRAFFICKING, HITS FOR HIRE, THEFT,
DRUG SALES, ARSON, AND OF COURSE, STRONG
ARMING THE LOCALS
• MEMBERS OFTEN ARRIVE IN U.S. WITH FIGHTING
SKILLS GAINED FROM MILITARY TRAINING, AND
ARE PARTICULARLY ADEPT WITH MACHETES
•
MS 13
• CALLING CARD  MS-13 OFTEN LEAVES BEHIND
DISMEMBERED CORPSES, COMPLETE WITH THE
DECAPITATED HEAD, AT THE SCENE OF THEIR
MURDERS. OFTEN A GRIM NOTE IS ATTACHED TO
THE BODY
• EX. TEXAS  A MS-13 GANG MEMBER LED THE
GANG RAPE OF A 24 YEAR-OLD WOMAN AND THEN
KICKED HER IN THE NECK WITH SUCH FORCE THAT
IT KILLED HER
•
•
ASKING SOMEONE “WHERE ARE YOU FROM” –
MEANS TROUBLE  ASKING WHAT GANG ARE YOU
FROM AND WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO ABOUT IT
• REASON FOR MOVEMENT  JOBS (CONSTRUCTION
MAINLY)
• MOVING TO PLACES WITH SOME TYPE OF GROWTH
• AS LA POLICE CRACKED DOWN – MOVED TO AREAS
THAT WERE NOT FAMILIAR WITH THE GANG
• SOME CORRECTIONS OFFICIALS’ VIEW  MS13 MARKETS THE GANG AS A WAY TO
EMBRACE LATIN AMERICAN HERITAGE
• ENCOURAGE YOUTH TO SHOW PRIDE
TOWARDS THEIR CULTURE WHEN IT IS
REALLY JUST A MASK OVER THE GANG'S REAL
CRIMINAL OBJECTIVES
• GANG MEMBERS PAY GUARDS TO SMUGGLE IN
CELLPHONES, WHICH MEMBERS USE TO
CONSULT AND COMMUNICATE WITH OTHER
MEMBERS IN GUATEMALA, HONDURAS AND
THE US
MS 13 IN ARIZONA
• ACCORDING TO POLICE  GANG MEMBERS
COME TO ARIZONA BECAUSE ITS POSITION ON
THE BORDER MAKES IT A HOT SPOT FOR
DRUGS AND HUMAN SMUGGLING
MS 13 IN NEBRASKA
• THE LAST OF 24 MS-13 MEMBERS SWEPT UP
ON FEDERAL FIREARMS CHARGES AND
CONSPIRACY TO DISTRIBUTE
METHAMPHETAMINE WERE SENTENCED LAST
YEAR IN THE LARGEST BUST SINCE THE
GROUP EMERGED THERE IN 2004
MS 13 IN NEBRASKA
• MS 13 GANG GRAFFITI HAS BEEN SHOWING
UP MORE FREQUENTLY OMAHA
NEIGHBORHOODS
• MS13
MS 13 IN MARYLAND
MS 13 IN MARYLAND
• PRESENT THROUGHOUT MONTGOMERY AND
PRINCE GEORGE’S COUNTIES, BALTIMORE
CITY AND BALTIMORE, CARROLL COUNTY,
FREDERICK, HARFORD, AND WASHINGTON
COUNTIES
• NUMEROUS ASSAULTS, MURDERS, RAPES, AS
WELL AS EXTORTION, PROSTITUTION RINGS
AND THEFTS FROM AUTOS.
MS 13 IN TEXAS
• 10-15 GROUPS OPERATING IN TEXAS –
MOSTLY IN DALLAS
• TEXAS
MS 13 IN N. VIRGINIA
• ACTIVE IN NORTHERN VIRGINIA SINCE EARLY
1990S (~12 CLIQUES)
• CONCERN ABOUT GANGS ESCALATED AMONG
THE PUBLIC AND POLITICIANS AFTER A
SERIES OF VIOLENT ATTACKS IN 2004,
INCLUDING THE SLAYING OF A HERNDON
TEENAGER BY TWO MS-13 MEMBERS AND A
MACHETE ATTACK ON A MEMBER OF ANOTHER
GANG BY THREE MS-13 MEMBERS IN THE
ALEXANDRIA AREA
MS 13 IN MEXICO
• EXISTS IN AT LEAST SEVEN MEXICAN STATES,
FROM THE SOUTHERN END OF MEXICO TO
THE U.S. BORDER
• LARGELY ALONG EXISTING CARTEL DRUGSMUGGLING ROUTES
• THE GANG IS FOUND ALONG TRADITIONAL
MIGRATION ROUTES AS WELL, AND
IMMIGRANTS TRAVELING BOTH LEGALLY AND
ILLEGALLY ALONG THESE ROUTES ARE
REGULARLY ATTACKED AND ROBBED BY MS13 GANG MEMBERS.
MS 13 IN CANADA
• VANCOUVER, MONTREAL, TORONTO, AND TO A
LESSER EXTENT, EDMONTON AND CALGARY .
• FIRST MS-13 MEMBER WAS ARRESTED IN
VANCOUVER IN 1997, BUT OVER THE PAST
FOUR YEARS, THE NUMBER OF MS-13 GANG
MEMBERS IDENTIFIED BY VANCOUVER POLICE
HAS INCREASED AND THE NUMBER OF DRUG
HOUSES RAIDED HAS RISEN.
MS 13 IN CANADA
• THE TORONTO CHAPTER OF MS-13 HAS A
PRESENCE IN THE WEST SIDE OF THE CITY'S
DOWNTOWN REGION
• REMAINED TRUE TO ITS ROOTS AND IS
COMPRISED ALMOST EXCLUSIVELY OF YOUNG
MEN OF LATIN AMERICAN ORIGIN
• CANADA
CANADA
LONG ISLAND