Seven members of the MS-13 gang have been sentenced to prison in connection with a double homicide that occurred in January 2022 at the Beaumont federal prison. The announcement was made by Acting U.S. Attorney Abe McGlothin, Jr. for the Eastern District of Texas on Friday last week.
According to a press release from the United States Attorney’s Office, Juan Carlos Rivas-Moreira, a high-ranking MS-13 member, received an additional life sentence for his role in the attack. Hector Ramires received a 360-month sentence. The jury found the group guilty of organizing and carrying out an assault on rival gang members, leading to two murders and two attempted murders. The attack triggered a national lockdown of the federal prison system.
According to the United States Department of Justice, the assault lasted around eight minutes and resulted in more than 45 stab wounds. The attack was apparently ordered by MS-13 leaders in El Salvador.
The inquiry was carried out by both the FBI and the Federal Bureau of Prisons. The case was part of Operation Take Back America and Joint Task Force Vulcan, which are government programs focused on targeting MS-13 and other transnational criminal groups.
The court imposed hefty prison sentences on Larry Navarete, Jorge Parada, Raul Landaverde-Giron, Sergio Sibrian, and Dimas Alfaro-Granados. Assistant US Attorney Joseph R. Batte prosecuted the case in collaboration with the Eastern District of Texas and JTFV.
