MS-13 Gang Member Sentenced to 45 Years’ Imprisonment for Murder Conspiracies and Attempted Murders on Long Island

Earlier today at the federal courthouse in Central Islip, New York, Anibel Rondolpho Rodriguez, a member of La Mara Salvatrucha, also known as MS-13, an international criminal organization, was sentenced by United States District Judge Joseph F. Bianco to 45 years’ imprisonment following the defendant’s March 30, 2017 guilty plea to racketeering charges including two murder conspiracies, two attempted murders, and threatening to commit assault.

The sentence was announced by Bridget M. Rohde, Acting United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, William F. Sweeney, Jr., Assistant Director-in-Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office (FBI), and Patrick J. Ryder, Commissioner, Nassau County Police Department (NCPD).

“The defendant, and other members of the Hempstead clique of the MS-13, unleashed a wave of violence in Nassau County that included murders and vicious assaults,” stated Acting United States Attorney Rohde.  “Today’s sentence sends a strong message that this Office and our federal, state and local law enforcement partners will work together to ensure that all those who threaten our communities are brought to justice.”  Ms. Rohde also extended her appreciation to the members of the FBI’s Long Island Gang Task Force for their tireless efforts during the investigation.

“It is disturbing and unsettling to investigate a group of people and keep discovering in case after case that they truly have no respect for human life,” stated FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge Sweeney.  “MS-13 gang members actually revel in killing anyone who crosses them, regardless our Long Island Gang Task Force continues to work with the community to keep the gang from wreaking havoc on innocent people.  We will use every tool we have to decimate MS-13 and keep them from rebuilding their ranks.”

“The arrest, conviction and sentencing of defendant Anibel Rondolpho Rodriguez is an excellent example of the professionalism and dedication of numerous law enforcement agencies that have worked tirelessly and collaborated on this case,” stated NCPD Commissioner Ryder.  “Our residents and communities will be safer with defendant Rodriquez incarcerated along with his other co-conspirators.  Gangs and their heinous crimes can never be tolerated in any community and we are taking a proactive approach to keep our residents and police safe.”

Conspiracy to Murder Miguel Perez

According to court documents previously filed in the case, on August 9, 2012, Rodriguez, also known as “Peluche,” agreed with two co-conspirators to kill Miguel Perez, who was associated with the Zulu Nation gang.  The Zulu Nation gang had an ongoing dispute with members of the Hempstead Locos Salvatruchas clique of the MS-13.  While the defendant was talking to Perez outside the victim’s house in Freeport, New York, a co-conspirator fatally shot Perez three times with a 9mm. handgun.

Conspiracy to Murder Jose Ivan Reyes-Lainez and Attempted Murder of Jane Doe

On October 6, 2013, in Hempstead, New York, the defendant and six co-conspirators confronted Jose Ivan Reyes-Lainez about his suspected membership in a rival gang. The defendant and his co-conspirators decided to kill Reyes-Lainez, as well as Jane Doe, who had accompanied Reyes-Lainez, to prevent her from being a witness to the murder.  Reyes-Lainez was fatally stabbed more than two dozen times, and Jane Doe was stabbed 18 times but she survived her injuries. 

Attempted Murder of John Doe No. 1

On September 14, 2013, a group of MS-13 members including the defendant confronted John Doe No. 1 and another individual who they believed to be members of the rival Bloods street gang in Roosevelt, New York.  The defendant grabbed a baseball bat from the individual and struck John Doe No. 1.  The defendant’s co-conspirators also struck John Doe No. 1 with a wooden board, stabbed him with a screwdriver, and punched and kicked him.

Assault of John Doe No. 2

On October 6, 2013, in Hempstead, MS-13 members including the defendant approached John Doe No. 2 and asked him whether he was a gang member, questioning him about a tattoo on his arm.  John Doe No. 2 denied any gang membership and was walking away from the group when he was stabbed and kicked by the MS-13 members, including the defendant.

The conviction of Rodriguez is the latest in a series of federal prosecutions by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York targeting members of the MS-13, a violent international criminal organization.  The MS-13’s leadership is based in El Salvador and Honduras, but the gang has thousands of members across the United States, comprised primarily of immigrants from Central America.  With numerous branches, or cliques, the MS-13 is the largest and most violent street gang on Long Island.  Since 2003, hundreds of MS-13 members, including dozens of clique leaders, have been convicted on federal felony charges in this district.  A majority of those MS-13 members have been convicted on federal racketeering charges for participating in murders, attempted murders and assaults.  Since 2010 alone, this Office has obtained indictments charging MS-13 members with carrying out more than 40 murders, and has convicted dozens of MS-13 leaders and members in connection with those murders.  These prosecutions are the product of investigations led by the FBI’s Long Island Gang Task Force, comprising agents and officers of the FBI, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement – Homeland Security Investigations, NCPD, Suffolk County Police Department, Nassau County Sheriff’s Office, Suffolk County Probation, Suffolk County Sheriff’s Department, Rockville Centre Police Department and New York State Police.

The government’s case is being handled by the Office’s Long Island Criminal Division. Assistant United States Attorneys John J. Durham, Raymond A. Tierney and Paul G. Scotti are in charge of the prosecution.

The Defendant:

ANIBEL RONDOLPHO RODRIGUEZ

Age:  29

Residence: Freeport, New York

E.D.N.Y. Docket No. 14-CR-68 (JFB)