The head of a Washington-area clique of a major Hispanic gang has been indicted in a conspiracy to kill rival gang members to further his standing in the criminal organization, according to charging documents filed in Alexandria’s U.S. District Court.
Dennis Gill Bernardez, 32, aka “Dopre” and “Pando,” was charged with 10 counts in connection with the shooting of two men in Fairfax County.
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Bernardez ran Normandie Locos Salvatrucha, the D.C. and Prince George’s County clique of Mara Salvatrucha, or MS-13, according to an affidavit signed by an FBI agent. The Normandie Locos clique originated in Los Angeles and has been found well-established in Virginia, Maryland and New York City.
Gang leaders in El Salvador sent Bernardez into Northern Virginia because the gang there, the Western Locos Salvatrucha, was not “representing,” or handling gang business properly, the FBI agent wrote.
The shooting stemmed from an earlier fight in Reston between an MS-13 gang member and a former 18th Street gang member from Los Angeles.
On Oct. 6, Bernardez and two other members approached the former California gang member and other people at the Freetown Court in Reston.
Bernardez asked in Spanish, “Which ones?” and his companion pointed to the Los Angeles gangster.
The MS-13 clique leader pulled a revolver from his waistband and fired one shot, but the bullet went through the rival’s sweatshirt, police said.
He turned the gun toward another man, shooting him twice in the back, police said.
A third man held up his hands and said, “I am not in their gang. I have no problem with you.”
Bernardez turned to walk away, then spun back around and said, “I can’t leave any evidence,” shooting the third man in the back and buttocks, according to police.
Both men survived.
The third victim identified Bernardez in a photo array. Fairfax County police officers arrested Bernardez on Thanksgiving Day in the District.
Bernardez later told FBI agents that he confronted the victims because they beat up his friend’s girlfriend, and shot them after they pulled out knives, according to the affidavit.
