You are reading

Queens MS-13 Gang Leader Indicted for Ordering Hit on Rival Gang Member

Marcelo Esquivel, 31, of Jamaica Queens (back row middle) Photo courtesy of the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Eastern District of New York

July 10, 2020 By Allie Griffin

A leader in the notorious international MS-13 gang has been indicted in federal court for ordering the murder of a member of the rival Latin Kings gang.

Marcelo Esquivel, 31, of Jamaica, Queens, is charged with murder in-aid-of racketeering in connection to the July 2, 2012 killing of Daniel Licona-Gonzalez.

Esquivel ordered the slaying of Licona-Gonzalez, 18, and provided the gun to the killer who carried out the hit, according to the federal indictment.

At the time, Esquivel, also known as “Profugo” and “Baby,” was the leader of the Centrales Locos Salvatruchas clique of MS-13 in Jamaica, Queens.

According to court documents, Esquivel directed two MS-13 members to murder Licona-Gonzalez and handed them the gun on July 2, 2012. One member was new to the gang and hoped to gain respect by carrying out the killing.

The two gang members hopped on a bicycle — with one peddling the bike and the other on the back — into Latin Kings territory, the documents state. When they spotted a group of men they believed were Latin Kings members, one of the MS-13 members yelled out “La Mara,” a reference to his gang, and shot Licona-Gonzalez in the head, according to the documents.

Licona-Gonzalez died the following day.

“Using the gun allegedly provided by Esquivel, two MS-13 gang members took the life of another human being,” stated Homeland Security Investigations Special Agent-in-Charge Peter Fitzhugh. “A human life is a human life, regardless of gang affiliation, and gang on gang violence will not be tolerated.”

Esquivel was arrested Thursday. If convicted, he faces a mandatory sentence of life in prison and is eligible for the death penalty.

MS-13, also known as La Mara Salvatrucha, is based in El Salvador and Honduras, but the gang has thousands of members across the U.S.

Since 2010, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York–which covers Brooklyn, Queens and Long Island– has investigated more than 45 murders in the district linked to MS-13. It has indicted and convicted dozens of leaders and members in connection to the murders.

“The Eastern District will continue to do everything possible to crush MS-13,” U.S. Attorney Richard Donoghue said in a statement.

email the author: news@queenspost.com

One Comment

Click for Comments 
McGruff

I thought all this MS-13 “nonsense” was fear mongering by the right? Shocking how most of these “fake” gangs are in the bluest areas yet these blue politicians want us to believe these problems dont exist. Very odd.

Reply

Leave a Comment
Reply to this Comment

All comments are subject to moderation before being posted.


The reCAPTCHA verification period has expired. Please reload the page.

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Recent News

Brooklyn man charged in viral Belt Parkway crash scheme captured on victim’s dashcam: DA

A Brooklyn man was criminally charged with staging a car crash on the Belt Parkway in Rosedale last month that was captured on the dashboard camera in the victim’s car and went viral on social media after it was posted on TikTok, where it was viewed by millions worldwide.

Maikel Martinez, 28, of 14th Avenue in Dyker Heights, was apprehended by law enforcement Thursday at JFK Airport after arriving back in Queens on a flight from Ecuador, Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced on Friday.

SUV explosion rocks South Ozone Park street, damaging homes and vehicles on Friday morning: FDNY

A quiet residential street in South Ozone Park was rocked by a thunderous explosion on Friday morning after an SUV filled with dangerous construction materials detonated in front of 131-16 133 St. five blocks west of the Van Wyck Expressway.

The massive blast damaged five homes and brought down Con Edison power lines on the block and obliterated the vehicle that belonged to a plumber who lives there. No one was injured in the blast but several residents of the block were near the vehicle just before it exploded, officials said..