Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche has authorized federal prosecutors to seek the death penalty against three alleged MS-13 gang members accused of executing a cooperating witness in Los Angeles, marking one of his first major enforcement decisions since taking over the Justice Department.

In a memo dated Wednesday and obtained by the Washington Examiner, Blanche directed First Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California Bill Essayli to pursue capital punishment for Roberto Carlos Aguilar, Dennis Anaya Urias, and Grevil Zelaya Santiago. The three men are charged in federal complaints with murder in aid of racketeering for the killing of a victim who had been assisting authorities in a federal case.