Broward teen was brutally murdered by MS-13 gang in New York, feds say
Though Jefferson Villalobos fled to South Florida to escape gang violence in his nativeHonduras, hewas brutally murdered by the notorious MS-13 gang in April while visiting family in Long Island, investigators say.
Four people are facing federal charges they murderedVillalobos, 18, of Pompano Beach, his cousin Michael Lopez Banegas, 20, of Brentwood, N.Y., and two other young men in a vicious attack earlier this year, according to court records unsealed thisweek.
The suspects were motivated by their desire to join the gang or they were already members and were trying to maintain their position within the criminal organization, said.
Villalobos had lived in Broward County for about three years and played soccer for Deerfield Beach High School before dropping out to work in construction, friends said. Authorities said he was savagely murdered during an Easter week vacation with relatives inNew York.
The bodies of the four victims, Villalobos, Lopez Banegas, Justin Llivicura, 16, of East Patchogue, N.Y., and Jorge Tigre, 18, of Bellport, N.Y., were found in a prosecutors wooded area near a park in Central Islip. Investigators said they had been slashed with machetes.
Family members said Villalobos’ face had been mutilated and he was identified, in part, by a tattoo on his arm. His tattoo depicted two hands wrapped around rosary beads with thewords “In God’s hands.”
Arrested in New York and Virginia in the last several days were: Alexis Hernandez, Santos Leonel Ortizand Omar Antonio Villalta, who is also knownas “Anticristo” or the Antichrist. Their ages were not immediately available. The fourth suspect, a juvenile, was arrested but not publicly identified.
The suspects have all pleaded not guilty and are jailed pending trial, court records show.
The four accused of the murder are among21people now facing gang conspiracy and other serious charges in a wide-ranging series of indictments filed against alleged members of the gang in the Eastern District of New York in the last 18 months. The charges involve about a dozen murders, several attempted murders, assaults, obstruction of justice, arson, conspiracy to distribute marijuana, firearms and other offenses.
MS-13 is the street gang La Mara Salvatrucha, a name derived from the slangwords for gang, El Salvadorans and cunning, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
The gang’s motto is “Kill, rape, control” and it is known for barbaric slayings and preying on recent immigrants to the U.S., according to experts.
In theU.S., thegang originated in Los Angeles, then spread to other states. It has a large presence in New York, VirginiaandWashington, D.C., but is not considered prevalent in South Florida. It is believed to have about 30,000 members in theworld, withmore than 10,000 in the U.S., investigators said.
Efforts to contact Villalobos’ parents and other relatives and friends for comment were unsuccessful Tuesday.
Staff researcher Barbara Hijek and staff writer Michael Clary contributed to this report.
pmcmahon@sunsentinel .com, 954-356-4533 or Twitter @SentinelPaula