MS-13 gang member convicted for ‘gruesome murders' in Northern Virginia, Massachusetts

A federal jury on Monday found an MS-13 gang member guilty of killing five people in Northern Virginia from 2018 to 2022, and another person in Massachusetts.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia said in a news release that 27-year-old Elmer De Jesus Alas Candray, a Salvadoran national who also goes by German Alexander Ramirez Lopez, Buky, and Desquiciado, was convicted in six murders, including conspiracy to participate in a racketeering enterprise; five counts each of conspiracy to commit murder in aid of racketeering and murder in aid of racketeering; and three counts of using a firearm during a violent crime resulting in death.

"This case is a stark reminder of the violence and disregard for human life inherent in MS-13’s criminal enterprise," Jessica D. Aber, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia said. "Their deadly activities, from flooding our streets with dangerous narcotics to the brutal murders by which they attempt to impose their presence, will not go unchecked."

Candray and multiple co-conspirators are responsible for six murders.

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The first incident brought to justice was on Aug. 15, 2018, when Candray met other members of MS-13 in New Bedford, Massachusetts, to kill an associate of MS-13’s Directos Locos Salvatrucha clique, identified as K.A.C.

The gang’s leadership approved the murder because they believed K.A.C. betrayed MS-13. That night, they met the victim at an MS-13 member’s home in New Bedford, where they beat and strangled K.A.C. to death, the attorney’s office said.

The victim’s body was then dismembered and stashed in trash bags before being buried in a wooded area. Candray and others involved were promoted for their roles in the murder.

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"Alas Candray committed half a dozen gruesome murders to rise in rank in MS-13, demonstrating a vile disregard for his victims' lives," Acting Special Agent in Charge Geist said.

Nearly a year later, on June 23, 2019, Candray and other MS-13 gang members and associates armed themselves with a 9mm pistol, a .45 caliber firearm and two machetes before traveling to Hunters Woods in Reston, Virginia. While there, the group is accused of killing an individual by shooting and slashing him.

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Candray and others also lured a young woman identified in court documents as I.J.P.G., to Colts Neck Road in Reston under false pretenses on Sept. 17, 2020. When the woman arrived, Candray and three co-conspirators killed her by taking turns shooting her in the face.

Candray participated in three other murders in Northern Virginia from March 2021 through June 18, 2022. Then on Aug. 18, 2022, he instructed a relative to tell gang members and associates, using coded language, to get rid of ammunition because law enforcement had pictures of them. Candray also instructed the crew to move out of the area. The next day, the relative relayed the message.

U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for additional information about Candray's immigration status.

Candray will be sentenced by a federal judge Jan. 30. He faces a minimum of life in prison for each of the murder charges.