BEAUMONT, Texas — The US Attorney's Office in the Eastern District of Texas identified seven MS-13 gang members who are accused of committing violent crimes during the deadly Jan 31 attack in a Beaumont penitentiary that caused a nationwide prison lockdown.
(Editor's note: The video above is from a Feb 1, 2022 newscast)
Two prison inmates died after the MS-13 gang members attacked multiple Sureños members and a Mexican Mafia associate, according to a news release from the US Attorney’s Office in the Eastern District of Texas.
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Officials said MS-13 gang member Rivas-Moreiera began the prison attack when he came behind Guillermo Riojas and stabbed Riojas twice in the chest. Riojas fell immediately, and other MS-13 defendants stabbed and kicked Riojas while he lay motionless on the prison floor, the release says.
Riojas died as a result of the prison attack. He suffered from multiple stab wounds to his heart and lung.
The other MS-13 members also chased, cornered, beat, and repeatedly stabbed Andrew Pineda, and other Sureños members, officials said.
Pineda died as a result of the prison attack. He suffered more than 45 distinct stab wounds to his body, the release says.
Two other Sureños members were stabbed multiple times and survived the attack by the MS-13 defendants, officials said.
The prison attack lasted approximately three minutes.
MS-13 members Rivas-Moreiera, Alfaro-Granado, and Landaverde-Giron are all serving sentences of life imprisonment for their participation in MS-13 and committing murder in aid of racketeering in furtherance of MS-13, according to the release.
Hector Ramires is also serving a sentence of 27 years’ imprisonment following his conviction for participating in MS-13 and committing a murder on behalf of the gang, officials said.
All seven defendants are in federal custody. The case has been assigned to U.S. District Judge Marcia Crone.
The defendants have been identified as the following:
- Juan Carlos Rivas-Moreiera, 41, of El Salvador
- Dimas Alfaro-Granado, 39, of El Salvador
- Raul Landaverde-Giron, 32, of El Salvador
- Larry Navarete, 41, of Nicaragua
- Jorge Parada, 42, of El Salvador
- Hector Ramires, 28, of Honduras
- Sergio Sibrian, 29, of El Salvador
The charges in the 15-count indictment announced Thursday include the following:
- Conspiracy to participate in a racketeering enterprise
- Two counts of violent crimes in aid of racketeering, murder
- Violent crimes in aid of racketeering, conspiracy to commit murder
- Violent crimes in aid of racketeering, attempted murder, and assault with a dangerous weapon
- Violent crimes in aid of racketeering, attempted murder, and assault with a dangerous weapon
- Two counts of murder in a federal facility
- Conspiracy to commit murder in a federal facility
- Two counts of murder by a federal prisoner
- Two counts of attempted murder in a federal facility
- Two counts of assault with intent to do bodily harm in a federal facility
“Even while incarcerated, MS-13 members remain committed to the organization’s violent ideology and, as alleged in this indictment, continue to engage in extreme acts of murder and attempted murder,” said Joint Task Force Vulcan Director John J. Durham.
MS-13 is described by officials as a transnational criminal organization primarily made of immigrants or descendants of immigrants from El Salvador. It also includes members from other countries such as Honduras, Guatemala, and Mexico, according to the news release.
MS-13 has had a symbiotic relationship with both the Mexican Mafia and the Sureños, which is a close association of Hispanic gangs that pay tribute to the Mexican Mafia while incarcerated in federal and state prisons in the United States, according to the release.
Officials said that the relationship recently began to fall apart as MS-13’s leadership in El Salvador, the Ranfla Nacional, sought to exert more control and independence of its own members while incarcerated in prisons within the United States. This included using MS-13 command and control structure to enforce their orders, including orders to commit murders, even while in prison, according to the release.
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