Authorities in Baltimore County, Maryland, charged five suspected MS-13 gang members with the murder of a 16-year-old girl.
The Baltimore County Sheriff’s Office said the group of five gang members suspected that 16-year-old Gabriela Alejandra Gonzalez Ardon was in contact with a rival gang and lured her to a reservoir where they killed her and then dumped her body.
Ardon’s body was discovered on May 29, and she was identified as having been missing from Nassau County, New York, since the summer of 2019.
The suspects include Jonathan Pesquera-Puerto, 19; Edys Valenzuella-Rodriguez, 20; Wualter Hernandez-Orellana, 19; Asael Ezequie Gonzalez-Merlos, 16; and Wilson Art Constanza-Galdomez, 21. They were already in police custody for charges of other crimes. They have now also been charged with first-degree murder for Ardon’s killing.
The Trump administration has made cracking down on the violent MS-13 gang a priority over the last few years and announced sex-trafficking charges against several members in early August.
In July, the administration announced it had filed terrorism charges against an MS-13 member, and another is facing the death penalty as a result of a joint task force initiative.
President Trump referred to the crackdown as “historic.”
President @realDonaldTrump: “We’ve just concluded a historic operation leading to the arrest and indictment of dozens of savage MS-13 members and leaders all across the country.” pic.twitter.com/vnVfiAjYra
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) July 15, 2020
