HOUSTON, TX – Eight members of the violent transnational criminal organization Mara Salvatrucha, known as MS-13, pleaded guilty to charges stemming from a racketeering conspiracy involving multiple murders and acts of witness tampering in the Houston area.
According to plea agreements, Walter Antonio Chicas-Garcia, 28, Wilson Jose Ventura-Mejia, 29, and Miguel Angel Aguilar-Ochoa, 40, will each be sentenced to 50 years in federal prison. Marlon Miranda-Moran, 26, will be sentenced to 35 years. All four are citizens of El Salvador who were unlawfully residing in Houston at the time of the offenses.
On August 11, four additional MS-13 members also pleaded guilty. Luis Ernesto Carbajal-Peraza, 33, is expected to receive 40 to 45 years in prison, while Edgardo Martinez-Rodriguez, 35, Carlos Alexi Garcia-Gongora, 27, and Wilman Rivas-Guido, 29, each face 45 to 50 years.
Court records show the defendants admitted to participating in a criminal enterprise responsible for multiple murders, extortion, drug trafficking, robbery, and obstruction of justice in and around Houston from 2017 to 2018. Victims were targeted as rival gang members, suspected law enforcement cooperators, or individuals working against MS-13’s interests. The murders were carried out with machetes, a baseball bat, and strangulation, with photos of victims’ bodies sent to MS-13 leaders in El Salvador.
Sentencing hearings for all eight defendants are scheduled for later this year. A federal judge will determine the final terms.
The FBI, Homeland Security Investigations, Houston Police Department, Harris County Sheriff’s Office, and multiple other agencies contributed to the investigation. The case is being prosecuted by the Justice Department’s Violent Crime and Racketeering Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Texas.
