Multiple arrests net 103 gang members

Tue., March 15, 2005

Associated Press

WASHINGTON – The government on Monday announced the arrests of 103 alleged members of MS-13, a street gang rooted in Central America where members have been known to behead enemies and attack with grenades and machetes.

The arrests, in seven cities since early January, are the first of a nationwide crackdown on Mara Salvatrucha, or MS-13, one of the largest and most violent gangs in the United States. Federal officials estimate between 8,000 and 10,000 MS-13 members live in 31 states – the majority of them in the country illegally. There have been machete attacks in U.S. cities along the East Coast.

Agents used information from state and local law enforcement authorities to target MS-13 activities in the New York, Washington, Los Angeles, Baltimore, Newark, Miami and Dallas metropolitan areas.

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Multiple arrests net 103 gang members

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