1,300-Year Sentence for ‘Worst Gang’ Member

A member of “the worst gang in the world” has been handed a jail sentence exceeding 1,300 years, prosecutors have confirmed, for his involvement in a catalogue of crimes including murder, trafficking, extortion and kidnapping.

MS-13 gang member Marvin Abel Hernandez Palacios was given a total sentence of 1,335 years for his crimes on Thursday for “aggravated homicide, aggravated femicide, disappearance of persons, extortion, illicit trafficking and illicit groups”, according to a statement from El Salvador prosecutors, The Mirror reports.

He was not the only one to receive an extraordinary prison term, with El Salvadorian prosecutors sentencing a total of 248 MS-13 gang members on December 18. Sentences ranged from 463 to 958 years, according to CBS News.

The wave of prosecutions by the Central American nation’s Attorney General’s Office, which functions as the country’s Department of Public Prosecutions, represents the latest attempt to curb the notorious street gang.

Prosecutors stated that a total of 169 victims suffered as a consequence of their crimes.

The Central American prosecutor’s office stated: “Among the serious crimes committed by these criminals are the disappearance and murder of siblings Karen and Eduardo Guerrero Toledo in December 2021; the disappearance and femicide of soccer player Claudia Jimena Granados in October 2021; the murder of a [university student] who disappeared in March 2019; and the disappearance and murder of another student… in April 2020.”

The gangs extorted “victims who owned businesses, demanding different amounts of money in exchange for not harming them,” according to the Attorney General’s office.

“Some people had to close their businesses out of fear of the threats,” it stated.

Overall, the 248 MS-13 members were convicted of 43 counts of aggravated homicide, 42 counts of enforced disappearance, three counts of aggravated femicide, 86 counts of extortion, 29 counts of solicitation and conspiracy to commit homicide, 32 counts of prosecution for preparatory acts in illicit trafficking, five counts of illegal use or occupation of real estate, and illicit association.

MS-13, alongside its principal rival Barrio 18, controlled roughly 80% of El Salvador before a government crackdown on crime in 2022. The Central American country has one of the world’s highest murder rates, with both gangs responsible for approximately 200,000 deaths over the past three decades.

Earlier this year, US President Donald Trump designated MS-13 as a terrorist organisation. Trump described MS-13 as “probably the meanest, worst gang in the world” and “an evil group of people”.

“They’re sick and deranged,” he added.