MS-13 big sent ‘to rot’

Life sentence in vicious slay

The mother of a 16-year-old boy butchered by MS-13 members said she hopes the ruthless killers “rot in jail” — as the gang leader convicted of ordering the hit was handed a life sentence by a Brooklyn federal judge Tuesday.

An emotionless Melvi AmadorRios (inset), 32, sat quietly as Brooklyn Assistant US Attorney Anna Karamigios read impact statements at his sentencing hearing from victims of his Centrales Locos Salvatruchas, an MS-13 clique that ran riot in Jamaica, Queens.

Bertha Palaguachi, the mother of Julio Vasquez — a teen stabbed more than 30 times by MS-13 members acting on Amador-Rios’ orders in 2017 — said she hopes those involved in her son’s murder never see the light of day again.

“They didn’t kill an animal — they killed my son, and I want justice. I hope they stay and rot in jail,” Palaguachi wrote in her statement.

Amador-Rios — who went by the nicknames Letal and Pinky — was the corredor, or leader, of the local MS-13 arm when he instructed underlings Josue “Colocho” Leiva and Luis “Inquieto” Rivas to set up a trap and lure Vasquez to Alley Pond Park in Queens on May 16, 2017.

There they stabbed the teen 34 times, leaving his body nearly decapitated, prosecutors said.

Vasquez’s remains were later discovered by a local birdwatcher, who testified at trial that the body was “covered with maggots.”

Amador-Rios was also convicted of orchestrating the 2016 shooting of then-16-year-old Luis Serrano, who survived the attempted hit but was left paralyzed.

Serrano, who sat quietly in a motorized wheelchair in the back of the courtroom, wrote about the hardships he has faced since being targeted by members of AmadorRios’ clique — who believed he belonged to a rival Queens gang, all “because of the five minutes I spent with those three guys.”

“When I woke up in the hospital, the doctor told me how I wasn’t going to be able to move. I started to cry,” Serrano said in his statement.

Another victim — Wendy Bolanoes, who was robbed at gunpoint by MS-13 members acting at the leader’s discretion — wrote about how she suffers PTSD any time customers walk into her store wearing masks and hoodies because Amador-Rios was concerned with stealing “five dollars instead of getting a real job.”

“Today’s sentence reflects justice for the heinous and senseless nature of the defendant’s crimes,” US Attorney Breon Peace said in a statement.