Two members of the La Mara Salvatrucha gang, commonly known as MS-13, were sentenced to federal prison this week for racketeering, murder, attempted murder, and other gang-related charges.
Erick Escalante-Torres, who went by the names "Problematico" and "Deceptico," was sentenced to 27 years and 11 months in prison, and Jose Noe Ramirez-Avelar, known as "Chepito" or "Sparky," to 22 years. Both men were based in Santa Cruz, a coastal city in Northern California, and were actively involved in MS-13, a Los Angeles-born criminal organization with strong ties to Central America, particularly El Salvador.
Between 2015 and 2017, the defendants committed criminal activities with the intent to earn promotions and prestige within MS-13, including the murder of a California resident who they confused with a rival gang member.
Court documents indicate that in the summer of 2016, Escalante-Torres and Ramirez-Avelar, began planning to murder a man they believed to be associated with the 18th Street gang, a known rival of MS-13. Once the defendants received approval from "higher-up" gang leaders, they began surveilling the victim and plotting his death.
On the night of Sept. 22, 2016, both men executed their plan. They fatally shot the victim during his routine trip to a taquería, where he picked up his fiancée after her night shift to escort her home. Authorities later revealed the victim was not actually affiliated with the 18th Street gang.
Moreover, in July 2016, Escalante-Torres drove into rival gang territory and fired two shots at suspected gang members, hitting one victim in the leg, per the U.S. Attorney. That same summer, both defendants helped destroy evidence tied to a murder committed by other MS-13 gang members.
"This case illustrates the direct threat transnational gang activity is to our communities and the indiscriminate and needless devastation it brings to innocent families," said Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) San Francisco Special Agent Charge Tatum King in a written statement.
Escalante-Torres has been in federal custody since 2018, and Ramirez-Avelar has been in federal custody since 2017. Both defendants pleaded guilty in August 2024. Their sentences include an additional five-year term of supervised release.
According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, 10 other Santa Cruz-based MS-13 members have been convicted and sentenced for their involvement in gang-related criminal activities.
MS-13 originated in Los Angeles, California, during the 1980s. The gang was initially formed by Salvadoran immigrants who had fled their country's civil war. As many of its members were deported back to El Salvador in the 1990s, MS-13 spread its influence across El Salvador, Honduras, and Guatemala. In these regions, the gang is notorious for its extreme violence, drug trafficking, extortion, and other criminal activities.
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