Five members of the transnational criminal organization Mara Salvatrucha 13 (MS-13) were convicted Monday of committing six murders to advance their standing in the gang, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
A federal jury found Walter Chavez Larin, 26; Roberto Alejandro Corado Ortiz, 30; Edwin Martinez, 28; and brothers Bryan Alexander Rosales Arias, 28, and Erick Eduardo Rosales Arias, 27, guilty following a nine-week trial in Los Angeles. The victims were strangled, shot, stabbed, or beaten before their bodies were dumped in the Angeles National Forest.
“The horrific violence in this case underscores the urgency of destroying MS-13 and putting its depraved members behind bars,” Attorney General Pamela Bondi said. “Under President Trump, MS-13 can no longer unleash terror on the American people with impunity: We will eradicate this foreign terrorist organization and secure justice for its victims,” according to a DOJ press release.
Prosecutors said the Los Angeles MS-13 cliques required members to commit murder to advance in rank. The killings occurred in remote areas of Los Angeles County, including Malibu, the Santa Clarita Valley, and Van Nuys, between 2017 and 2019.
In June 2017, Chavez and others stabbed a victim to death in the Angeles National Forest. In October 2017, Corado and Bryan Rosales helped strangle and stab another man before throwing his body off a cliff. In July 2018, Corado and Erick Rosales shot a victim at a Malibu overlook and pushed his body down a hillside.
Martinez was convicted of murdering three people between December 2018 and January 2019, including a homeless man mistakenly believed to be tied to the rival 18th Street gang.
FBI Assistant Director Akil Davis said in the DOJ statement that “cases such as this one serve as a reminder that MS-13 has been designated as a foreign terrorist organization,” adding that the defendants carried out “barbaric attacks … to simply enhance their ranking within the gang.”
All five defendants face mandatory life sentences when sentenced in July 2026. Prosecutors have secured 25 convictions in the broader case, and additional MS-13 members are scheduled to go to trial in April 2026.
The convictions come as MS-13 activity continues to draw attention across the country. In August 2025, The Dallas Express reported that Texas state troopers arrested an MS-13 member and two alleged human smugglers in Val Verde County during a traffic stop under Operation Lone Star, underscoring the gang’s persistent attempts to cross the southern border.
The investigation involved the FBI, Los Angeles Police Department, and Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.