An MS-13 gang member implicated in nine attempted murders was sentenced yesterday to life in federal prison following an investigation by HSI, announced U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas Erin Nealy Cox.

Rolan Ivan Hernandez-Fuentes, a.k.a. “Tasmania,” pleaded guilty in April 2019 to RICO conspiracy, and was sentenced Thursday afternoon by U.S. District Judge Jane J. Boyle.

Two of his coconspirators, Jerson Gutierrez-Ramos, a.k.a. “Sparky,” and Kevin Cruz, a.k.a. “Street Danger,” also pleaded guilty to RICO conspiracy and were sentenced to 40 years and 21 years imprisonment, respectively.

As members of MS-13 – a violent transitional gang with the creed, “kill, rob, rape, control” – the defendants were requited to commit acts of violence to maintain membership.

According to plea papers, all three were members of the MS-13 clique “Irving Loco Salvatruchas,” or IRC,  which attempted to kill nine people and extort a tenth during six violent episodes in the Dallas area in 2017.

Both El Salvadorian citizens in the U.S. illegally, Mr. Hernandez-Fuentes, 22, and Mr. Gutierrez-Ramos, 21, admitted to participation in all six violent episodes. Mr. Cruz, 20, also in the U.S. illegally, admitted to participation in four.  

“Their despicable motto says it all: ‘kill, rob, rape, control.’ MS-13 espouses a vicious disregard for human life,” said U.S. Attorney Nealy Cox. “When machete-wielding gang members terrorize our streets, they will be met with swift and certain justice. We are gratified the Court has put this defendant behind bars for the rest of his life.”

“Aside from justice being served for the many victims of violent crime at the hands of blood thirsty MS-13 gang members, this life sentence also demonstrates HSI’s capabilities and resolve to dismantle these transnational criminal organizations piece by piece,” said Ryan L. Spradlin, special agent in charge of Homeland Security Investigations Dallas. “We will not tolerate the presence of these vicious criminals in our communities and will continue to prioritize taking them down and putting them where they belong - behind bars!” 

Per the defendant’s plea papers:

On July 14, 2017, Hernandez-Fuentes, Gutierrez-Ramos, and other MS-13 members travelled to an apartment complex in Dallas to kill an individual whom they believed belonged to a rival gang.  At the complex, the MS-13 gang members — armed with machetes and knives — ambushed the victim and another man, intending to kill both.  The gang members struck, stabbed and cut the victims, inflicting life-threatening injuries.  One victim had his throat and chest sliced open, necessitating cardiac surgery and an extended hospital stay.  The other victim sustained cuts and lacerations to his face and head.  After the attack, Hernandez-Fuentes licked the victims’ blood from the machete and stated that he liked the “taste of victory.” 

 

On July 15, 2017, Hernandez-Fuentes, Gutierrez-Ramos, and other MS-13 gang members attacked, robbed, and extorted a drug dealer in Irving.  The gang contacted the victim under the guise of seeking heroin.  Armed with the same machete from the night before,  Hernandez-Fuentes later forced the victim to kneel by hitting him with the flat part of machete and then then cutting him with it.  Gutierrez-Ramos then kicked the victim and another gang member took the heroin.  Hernandez-Fuentes took a cell phone photo of the victim and told him that they could find him if he refused to pay the ILS clique an extortion fee, a “tax,” to deal drugs in their territory.

 

On August 9, 2017, Hernandez-Fuentes, Gutierrez-Ramos, Cruz, and other MS-13 gang members attacked a victim whom they believed belonged to a rival gang at an apartment complex in Dallas, intending to kill the victim.  Armed with a sledgehammer, an icepick, a metal bar, a stick, and a knife, they chased the victim, caught him when he tripped, and then attacked him. The victim, who managed to escape, suffered significant injuries, including stab wounds to his back and lacerations on several parts of his body, which left him hospitalized for three days.  

 

On August 19, 2017, Hernandez-Fuentes, Gutierrez-Ramos, Cruz, and other members of MS-13 attacked and robbed a victim whom they believed was a rival gang member at an apartment complex in Irving.  Hernandez-Fuentes approached the victim near a Shell gas station and lured him to a nearby apartment complex where his fellow gang members were waiting.  After robbing the victim, they savagely beat, kicked, and hit him with a metal bat until they thought that he was dead.  The victim suffered significant injuries, including a fractured skull and bleeding from his brain, which required hospitalization. 

 

In late August, Hernandez-Fuentes, Gutierrez-Ramos, Cruz, and other MS-13 members plotted twice to kill a man believed to be a member of a rival gang.  They first lured the victim to a park in Dallas, where they were waiting to kill him with machetes and a shotgun.  The victim ultimately refused to get out of his car when he arrived at the park, and they aborted the plan to kill him.  A few days later, they renewed the plot.  At an apartment complex in Dallas, they blocked the victim from leaving and confronted him with a shotgun.  Gutierrez-Ramos pointed the shotgun at the victim’s chest to shoot him, but the weapon jammed and did not fire.  The victim then drove away and escaped.

 

On September 25, 2017, Hernandez-Fuentes, Gutierrez-Ramos, Cruz, and other MS-13 gang members went to Running Bear Park in Irving to ambush and kill a victim whom they believed to be a rival gang member.  Armed with machetes, sticks, and a shotgun, they lured the victim to the park under the guise that they were going to buy a tattoo machine from him.  The victim, however, unexpectedly arrived at the park with three friends.  Nonetheless, the victims were lured to the back of the park where the armed gang was hiding in the woods and waiting to spring.  When the victims arrived near the wooded area, the armed gang confronted them and forced them to kneel. A brutal attack ensued as the assailants hacked at the four victims with their machetes.  One male victim escaped unscathed.  During the attack, Hernandez-Fuentes hit one male victim with the shotgun and told him not to “mess with the mara (gang).”  At some point, Hernandez-Fuentes got distracted, and the victim ran away.  Hernandez-Fuentes fired at the victim but missed, and the victim escaped by swimming across a pond.  Another male victim also escaped after he sustained a serious cut to his arm, which required hospitalization.  The female victim, however, was not so fortunate.  She was savagely maimed, sustaining multiple deep lacerations to her arms, hands, and leg from the machete attack.  The female victim, who was left for dead badly bleeding in the park, sustained permanent and life-threatening injuries, which required extensive medical care and hospitalization.  After the attack, the attackers drove away with their weapons and property stolen from the victims.  The police arrested the attackers in the days following the savage assault.

 

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, the Irving Police Department, and the Dallas Police Department conducted the investigation.  Assistant U.S. Attorneys Gary Tromblay and Sid Moody  are prosecuting the case with Trial Attorney Julie Finocchiaro of the Department of Justice's Organized Crime and Gang Section.

          DALLAS - A federal grand jury has indicted eight MS-13 members, on charges in connection with their MS-13 gang activities, including racketeering conspiracy; attempted murder in aid of racketeering; assault with a dangerous weapon in aid of racketeering; conspiracy to commit murder in aid of racketeering; and use, carry and possession of a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence.

          The Indictment was announced by U.S. Attorney Erin Nealy Cox for the Northern District of Texas; Special Acting Assistant Attorney General John P. Cronan of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Special Agent in Charge Katrina W. Berger of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI) Dallas Office; Field Office Director Marc Moore of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Enforcement and Removal Operations (ICE-ERO); Chief Jeff Spivey of the Irving Police Department; Chief U. Reneé Hall of the Dallas Police Department and District Attorney Faith Johnson of the Dallas County District Attorney’s Office.

          Charged in the 18-count Indictment, which was unsealed today, are the following alleged MS-13 members and associates:

Rolan Ivan Hernandez-Fuentes, 25, aka Ivan Fuentes, Tasmania, Ronal Ivan and Fuentes Hernandez;

Jerson Gutierrez-Ramos, 20, aka Gerson Gutierrez, aka Sparky;

Cristian Wilfredo Cabrera-Cruz, 26, aka Cristin Benjamin Vigil and Mama;

Kevin Cruz, 19, aka Street Danger;

Jose Armando Saravia-Romero, 19, aka Jose Saravia, Mandy and Pinky;

Manuel Amaya-Alvarez, 21, aka Manuel Amaya and Chocolate; and

Jonathan Alexander Baires, 20, aka Splinter.

The name of the eighth defendant is currently under seal.

            “MS-13 is one of the most violent and ruthless gangs on the streets today,” stated U.S. Attorney Nealy Cox.  “Working with our federal, state and local partners, we are determined to dismantle this organization wherever we find it in order to make our communities safer in Texas.”

            “The Department of Justice will not allow MS-13 to terrorize any community, school or street corner,” said Attorney General Sessions.  “The gang has more than 10,000 members following its barbaric motto of ‘kill, rape, and control’ across 40 states, and that threatens law-abiding Americans. Today’s Indictment of eight MS-13 members—including five who are charged as illegal aliens in possession of firearms —makes clear that the Trump Administration and this Department will continue to go on offense against MS-13 with every lawful tool at our disposal.  I want to thank our fabulous Department of Justice attorneys for their hard work on this case as well as our partners with HSI, ICE, the Dallas County District Attorney's office, and the Dallas and Irving Police Departments. This case is yet another step toward dismantling MS-13 and taking its members off our streets for good."

            “Gangs — and especially transnational gangs like MS-13 — are responsible for many of the violent crimes that occur throughout the country,” said Special Agent in Charge Katrina W. Berger, HSI Dallas.  “Some of these violent gang members have illegally entered the United States as unaccompanied alien children.  As demonstrated with this HSI-led investigation, an ongoing coordinated multi-agency law enforcement effort is the best means of curtailing gang numbers, gang finances, and gang effectiveness to operate.

           “Evil gangs like MS-13 are perpetrators of senseless violence in our communities,” said Texas Governor Greg Abbott. “The Indictment of these individuals shows a continued commitment to going after these dangerous individuals and keeping our communities safe. The State of Texas will continue to offer any assistance and resources necessary to crack down on these criminals, and I thank our federal, state, and local partners in law enforcement for their ongoing efforts to address gang violence across Texas.”

           According to the Indictment, MS-13 is a national and transnational gang composed primarily of immigrants or descendants from El Salvador.  Branches or “cliques” of MS-13, one of the largest street gangs in the United States, operate in cities around the country, including the Irving Loco Salvatruchas (ILS) clique in the Dallas area.  MS-13 members and associates are required to commit acts of violence to join the gang, and to maintain membership and discipline within the gang.  One of the principal rules of MS-13 is that its members and associates must attack and kill rivals, known as “chavalas,” whenever possible. Members and associates of the ILS clique held meetings in multiple locations in the vicinity of Irving, Texas, including several public parks and a tunnel under Irving.

          According to the Indictment, beginning on or about July 2016, and continuing through on or about the date of the Indictment, Hernandez-Fuentes, Gutierrez-Ramos, and Cruz, participated in a racketeering conspiracy that included attempted murder, conspiracy to commit murder, and robbery.

          Across the racketeering conspiracy and other counts, the Indictment charges the following defendants for their alleged involvement in six attacks, including multiple machete attacks, upon 10 victims, including members or associates of the rival 18th Street Gang:



Date (on/in or about)





Location





Defendants





Weapons





Victims





July 14, 2017





5600 Block of Spring Valley Road in Dallas





Hernandez-Fuentes, Gutierrez-Ramos, Cabrera-Cruz





Machete and other weapons





Two (one from 18th Street Gang)





July 15, 2017





200 block of West Rochelle Road in Irving





Hernandez-Fuentes, Gutierrez-Ramos





Machete





One (drug dealer)





Aug. 9, 2017





3000 block of Webb Chapel Extension in Dallas





Hernandez-Fuentes, Gutierrez-Ramos, Cruz





Knife, sledgehammer, and other weapons





One (from 18th Street Gang)





Aug. 19, 2017





1900 block of East Grauwyler Road in Irving





Hernandez-Fuentes, Gutierrez-Ramos, Cruz, Saravia-Romero





Metal bat





One (from 18th Street Gang)





Middle of August 2017 through Aug. 20, 2017





Two Dallas parks and an apartment complex in Dallas





Hernandez-Fuentes, Gutierrez-Ramos, Cruz, Saravia-Romero





Shotgun





One (from 18th Street Gang)





Beginning of 2017 through Sept. 25, 2017





Various locations in Dallas and Running Bear Park in Irving





Hernandez-Fuentes, Gutierrez-Ramos, Cruz, Amaya-Alvarez, Baires





Multiple machetes, shotgun, and other weapons





Four (one from 18th Street Gang)



 

          Cabrera-Cruz was arrested on the Indictment yesterday and made an Initial Appearance in Dallas.  Hernandez-Fuentes, Gutierrez-Ramos, Cruz, Saravia-Romero, Amaya-Alvarez, and Baires are currently in Texas state custody, on charges relating to the August 19, 2017 and September 25, 2017 events described above.  Their Initial Appearances will be scheduled. 

          An Indictment is not a finding of guilt.  An Indictment is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

          The investigation was conducted by HSI Dallas, the Irving Police Department, the Dallas Police Department, and the Dallas County District Attorney’s Office, with assistance from ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations.  Trial Attorney Joseph Wheatley of the Criminal Division’s Organized Crime and Gang Section and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Gary Tromblay and Siddharth Mody of the Northern District of Texas, are prosecuting this case.

 

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