MS-13 leader sent to prison for life

GREENBELT, Md., June 9 (UPI) -- A leader of the violent MS-13 gang was sentenced to life in prison in Maryland Monday for murder, racketeering and other charges, federal prosecutors said.

The U.S. attorney's office said Israel Ramos Cruz, 30, of Wheaton, Md., was convicted on a lengthy list of charges following a six-week trial in U.S. District Court. Besides racketeering, murder, conspiracy and assault charges, Cruz was given an additional consecutive 35 years in prison for two counts of use and carrying of a firearm during a violent crime.

"Joining MS-13 is a ticket to federal prison," said U.S. Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein. "Forty-nine alleged MS-13 gang members have been charged with federal crimes in Maryland. This young man will spend the rest of his life in federal prison, and some of the remaining defendants may face death sentences."

Prosecutors alleged Cruz and co-defendant Santos Maximo Garcia, 30, ran the violent MS-13 gang for at least six years, with nine slayings attributable to the group.

Garcia faces a maximum sentence of life in prison for conspiracy to participate in a racketeering enterprise when he is sentenced Aug. 15.