Two MS-13 Gang Members Sentenced to Life in Prison for 2007 Murder

ALEXANDRIA, VA—Two members of MS-13 were sentenced today to life in prison for killing a rival gang member outside the Cerro Grande restaurant in Springfield, Va. Another gang member, Jorge Parada, aka “Rama,” 29, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced to 300 months in prison for conspiring to distribute cocaine.

Neil H. MacBride, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; Joseph Persichini, Jr., Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI Washington Field Office; Colonel David Rohrer, Fairfax County Chief of Police; and James A. Dinkins, Special Agent in Charge for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)’s Office of Investigations in Washington, D.C., made the announcement after sentencing by United States District Judge Liam O’Grady.

Rafael Parada-Mendoza, aka “Cheve,” 22, and Gabriel Hosman Perez-Amaya, aka “Dandy,” 22, both illegal aliens from El Salvador living in Fairfax County, Va., were convicted by a jury on June 11, 2009. According to court documents and evidence at trial, on Dec. 2, 2007, Parada-Mendoza and Perez-Amaya approached two gang members from rival gang Southside Locos while in the parking lot of Springfield Mall, nearby the Cerro Grande restaurant. They flashed gang signs, and when the two rivals stepped out of their car, Parada-Mendoza drew a handgun and killed the closest rival, Christian Argueta, aka “I.R.” The other individual escaped.

Evidence at trial showed that Parada-Mendoza and Perez-Amaya were members of MS-13, a violent gang that originated in Los Angeles and has local cliques throughout the United States, including northern Virginia. One prominent rule encourages MS-13 members to confront, fight and kill rival gang members, known as “chavalas.” The two gang members were accused of murdering Argueta as a means of maintaining and increasing their position in MS-13, and evidence showed they recounted their successful killing with fellow gang members at a meeting within hours after the shooting.

This case was investigated by the Washington Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Fairfax County Police Department, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Arlington County Police Department, and the Fairfax County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant United States Attorneys Jonathan Fahey, Jeanine Linehan and Inayat Delawala prosecuted the case on behalf of the United States.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Virginia at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/vae. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia at http://www.vaed.uscourts.gov or on https://pacer.login.uscourts.gov.