More alleged MS-13 gang members arrested, charged with murder

Authorities arrested three more members of the Salvadorian gang who face first-degree murder charges, U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi said during a Friday news conference. Prosecutors accused the men of stabbing a man in Florida about 100 times during a 2015 gang initiation before fatally shooting him. Gang members treated the murder like a game to earn a higher status within the terror group, Bondi said. Prosecutors are now considering whether to pursue the death penalty, she added. The three suspects arrested are the last of nine people believed to be involved in four homicides, Brett Skiles, acting special agent in charge for the FBI’s Miami office, told reporters.

How many other MS-13 members have been caught? The arrests came about a day after authorities arrested another alleged MS-13 member in New York on nearly a dozen murder charges. Last week, one of the highest-ranking MS-13 members in the United States was arrested in Virginia about 30 minutes outside the nation’s capital, according to Bondi. Authorities arrested the gang leader at a nice apartment complex where he lived alongside neighbors with children, she said. Criminals are living among us, bringing drugs and violence into the country, Bondi added. The attorney general advised gang members in the country to self-deport and warned that more arrests were coming.

Dig deeper: Read my report on Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem visiting recently deported migrants in El Salvador’s top security prison.