Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division
Today, a federal jury in the District of Nevada convicted three men, Jose Luis Reynaldo Reyes-Castillo, 30, also known as “Molesto,” of El Salvador; David Arturo Perez-Manchame, 27, also known as “Herbi,” of Honduras; and Joel Vargas-Escobar, 30, also known as “Momia,” of El Salvador, of conspiracy to participate in a racketeering enterprise involving murders and attempted murder, as well as murder in aid of racketeering, kidnapping in aid of racketeering, attempted murder in aid of racketeering, and related gun offenses.
According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, the defendants were members of La Mara Salvatrucha, commonly known as MS-13, a transnational criminal organization (TCO) composed largely of individuals of Salvadoran or other Central American descent. MS-13 members and associates are organized by subsets known as “cliques,” and each clique typically has one or more leaders, commonly referred to as “shot callers.” The defendants were members of the Parkview clique operating in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Prospective MS-13 members ordinarily must participate in the murder of rival gang members, known as “chavalas,” to gain entrance and maintain and increase position within MS-13. According to evidence presented at trial, Vargas-Escobar was the leader of the Parkview clique of MS-13 in Las Vegas up until his arrest on New Year’s Eve of 2017. Reyes-Castillo then became the ranking “Homeboy” of the Parkview clique in Las Vegas. Perez-Manchame was a member of the Parkview clique. Collectively, these three men committed nine murders, over approximately a year, in Nevada and California. Evidence at trial was presented showing that many of the victims were kidnapped by MS-13 members and taken to remote locations in the mountains and desert where those victims were tortured and killed.
“Thanks to the tireless work of our law enforcement partners and prosecutors, these MS-13 members will be held accountable for the horrific violence they unleashed on U.S. communities during their year-long killing spree,” said Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche. “This Justice Department will continue to use every tool available to us to dismantle MS-13 and other deadly transnational criminal organizations.”
“The depravity and complete devaluing of human life of these defendants, who were responsible for killing nine victims and shooting others, is beyond comprehension,” said Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “Gangs like MS-13 terrorize communities with violence and killing. The Criminal Division will pursue these violent transnational criminal organizations in this exact way – charge these depraved gang members in bunches and try them for their brazen crimes in a way that highlights exactly what they do, which is systemically kill. These defendants will now face a sentencing hearing where, rightly, their liberty for the rest of their lives is at stake.”
“These convictions deliver a clear and uncompromising message: MS 13’s violence will be met with the full power of federal prosecution,” said First Assistant U.S. Attorney Sigal Chattah for the District of Nevada. “These defendants carried out a campaign of terror marked by murders, kidnappings, and brutality. Their reign of violence ends today. The Las Vegas Homeland Security Task Force is unyielding in its mission — we will hunt down violent gang members, dismantle their networks, and drive transnational criminal organizations out of our communities. Southern Nevada will not be a refuge for predators or the terror they attempt to unleash.”
“This FBI has made wiping out violent gangs in America a top priority – including MS-13 — arresting over 2,500 violent gangs and criminal enterprises since last year, up 322%,” said FBI Director Kash Patel. “Today’s conviction is just the latest example — with three MS-13 gang members convicted of nine murders, kidnappings, drug trafficking, and more in Las Vegas. These gangs have terrorized our communities for far too long, and under this administration and law enforcement team, they are no longer allowed to operate with impunity in America. This FBI will continue working with our partners across the country to dismantle their presence coast to coast.”
“Today’s conviction underscores the unwavering commitment of FBI Las Vegas working alongside our federal and local partners in eradicating gang violence that endangers our communities through senseless crime, murder, and kidnapping,” said Special Agent in Charge Christopher S. Delzotto for the FBI Las Vegas Field Office. “The FBI has recently initiated Operation Summer Heat 2.0, a nationwide campaign dedicated to combating violent crime during the summer. MS-13 gang members are known for acts of brutality, violence, and intimidation. Despite these threats, the FBI and our law enforcement partners remain steadfast in our mission to protect our communities and eliminate this danger.”
“These convictions send a powerful message to violent transnational gangs like MS-13 — your reign of terror will not be tolerated in our communities,” said Acting Executive Associate Director John Condon of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). “HSI remains at the forefront of the fight against gangs that traffic in violence, fear, and exploitation, and we will continue to relentlessly pursue these criminals to ensure the safety and security of the American people.”
Photo recovered on cell phone of Jose Luis Reynaldo Reyes-Castillo.
At trial, evidence was presented about the following murders committed by Reyes-Castillo, Perez-Manchame, Vargas-Escobar and other members of MS-13:
In December 2017, the Parkview clique “greenlit” the death of murder victim 1 who was a member of a rival gang. On Dec. 18, Reyes-Castillo and another MS-13 member kidnapped murder victim 1 from downtown Mendota, California, and drove him to a rural area. Reyes-Castillo then took murder victim 1, along with several other MS-13 members, to another location and murdered him with a machete and knives, striking him so brutally that he was left unrecognizable.
On Dec. 31, 2017, Reyes-Castillo, Vargas-Escobar, and another MS-13 member killed murder victim 2 by shooting him multiple times in front of a house in Las Vegas. The MS-13 members saw murder victim 2 outside of an alleged drug house and believed he was dealing marijuana in their territory. They murdered him to reduce competition for MS-13 drug dealers.
On Jan. 9, 2018, Reyes-Castillo and other MS-13 members kidnapped murder victim 3, drove him to the desert and killed him by shooting and stabbing him multiple times. The MS-13 members believed murder victim 3 had defected to the rival 18th Street gang and thus targeted him to interrogate him and murder him. The victim’s body was found almost three weeks later, on a mountain near Las Vegas.
On Jan. 21, 2018, Reyes-Castillo and other MS-13 members kidnapped murder victim 4 from a nightclub and drove him to the desert. They murdered him by shooting and stabbing him multiple times. Murder victim 4 was targeted by the Parkview MS-13 clique for being a rival 18th Street gang member. They had gotten his name from interrogating a previous victim.
On Feb. 6, 2018, Reyes-Castillo and other MS-13 members were again searching for rival gang members. They killed two victims (murder victims 5 and 6) in a drive-by shooting. A third victim was hit by gunfire and survived. The MS-13 members believed the men were in rival gang territory and could be rival 18th Street gang members.
On Feb. 9, 2018, Reyes-Castillo, Perez-Manchame and other MS-13 members kidnapped murder victim 7, who they believed was a rival gang member because of the way he was dressed and his tattoo. They drove him to a mountain and murdered him by stabbing him over 200 times; his decomposing body was found in the mountains about three weeks later.
Sometime in February 2018, Reyes-Castillo and other MS-13 members kidnapped murder victim 8 as he had been named as an 18th Street gang member by a previous victim. The MS-13 members, including Reyes-Castillo, drove murder victim 8 to the mountains outside of Las Vegas and killed him by shooting him 20 times.
On March 1, 2018, Reyes-Castillo, Perez-Manchame and another MS-13 member kidnapped murder victim 9 and drove him up to the mountains near Las Vegas. They believed murder victim 9 was a rival gang member because he was in 18th Street gang territory. They murdered him by stabbing him more than 120 times.
The jury convicted Reyes-Castillo of one count of racketeering influenced corrupt organizations (RICO) conspiracy, eight counts of murder in aid of racketeering, seven counts of using and carrying a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence, six counts of causing death through the use of a firearm, five counts of kidnapping in aid of racketeering, and one count of attempted murder in aid of racketeering.
The jury convicted Perez-Manchame of one count of RICO conspiracy, two counts of murder in aid of racketeering, and two counts of kidnappings in aid of racketeering.
The jury convicted Vargas-Escobar of one count of RICO conspiracy, one count of murder in aid of racketeering, one count of using and carrying a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence, and one count of causing death through the use of a firearm.
Each of these defendants face a mandatory minimum penalty of life in prison without parole. Sentencing has been scheduled for Nov. 10, 2026, before U.S. District Judge Gloria M. Navarro. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
The FBI, HSI, and Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department’s Homicide Bureau investigated the case. The Eastern District of California also provided assistance.
Trial Attorney Christopher Taylor of the Criminal Division’s Violent Crime and Racketeering Section and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Melanee Smith and Steven Rose for the District of Nevada are prosecuting the case.
This case is part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. The HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad. Through historic interagency collaboration, the HSTF directs the full might of U.S. law enforcement towards identifying, investigating, and prosecuting the full spectrum of crimes committed by these organizations, which have long fueled violence and instability within our borders. In performing this work, the HSTF places special emphasis on investigating and prosecuting those engaged in child trafficking or other crimes involving children. The HSTF further utilizes all available tools to prosecute and remove the most violent criminal aliens from the United States. The Las Vegas HSTF comprises agents and officers from federal, state, and local law enforcement, with the prosecution being led by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Nevada.
Charges in this case were supported by Joint Task Force Vulcan (JTFV). JTFV was created in 2019 to eradicate MS-13 and now expanded at the direction of the Attorney General to target Tren de Aragua (TdA). JTFV is comprised of U.S. Attorney’s Offices across the country, including the District of Nevada; Southern and Eastern Districts of New York; Eastern and Western Districts of North Carolina; Western District of Virginia; Southern District of Florida; Eastern District of Texas; Western District of Oklahoma; Northern District of Indiana; and District of Arizona, as well as the Executive Office for U.S. Attorneys, and the Department of Justice’s National Security Division, Criminal Division, and the Office of Judicial Attaché and DEA partners in Bogotá, Colombia. Additionally, the FBI, HSI, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), U.S. Marshals Service (USMS), and the Federal Bureau of Prisons are essential law enforcement partners with JTFV.
Anyone with information about MS-13 is encouraged to provide their tips to law enforcement. The FBI and HSI both have nationwide tiplines that you can call to report what you know. You can reach the FBI at 1-866-STP-MS13 (1-866-787-6713), or call HSI at 1-866-DHS-2-ICE.