Central American Gang Plagues US Cities

Washington's stubborn refusal to protect US borders has resulted in the flooding of American cities with criminals from Mexico, Central and South America. One particularly violent gang, Mara Salvatrucha (commonly known as MS-13), which hails from various parts of Honduras and Guatemala and is reknown for beheading its enemies with machetes in those places, has established itself across the US, from Miami to California and as far north as Long Island, New York. Now Houston, Texas, finds itself under siege from MS-13.

A notorious Central American gang tied to a Huffman child's shooting death has waged a war of violence across Houston since last year, culminating in a SWAT standoff that netted several arrests, police said Tuesday.

Five of the 20 arrested so far have been charged in connection with four homicides in the Houston area, including the slaying of 18-month-old Aiden Naquin, who was shot in the head while strapped in an infant car seat April 12.

The Houston Police Department’s Lt. Robert Manzo displays photos of suspects arrested during a three-week initiative.

Houston police would not identify the gang by name because of restrictions imposed by a departmental policy. It is believed to be the violent MS-13 gang, also known as Mara Salvatrucha.

Harris County sheriff's detectives have said they believe Miguel Angel Castro, 21, the man charged in the death of the Naquin child, is a member of MS-13. Houston police acknowledged the homicides they have investigated in recent weeks involved 'multiple members of a single gang.'

'Their crimes run the gamut, from robberies to gang rivalries — that kind of thing,' said Houston Police Department Homicide Lt. Murray Smith, who was part of a three-week initiative that linked the homicides.

'In most cases, I believe, the victims were random ... Certainly, they targeted the Hispanic community.' Smith said some of the suspects have admitted to being part of the gang.

Naturally, none of this was necessary. Had the US government bothered to enforce American law and US territorial integrity, there wouldn't be enough members of MS-13 in the US to cause trouble. The families of those murdered by MS-13 should place the blame first with the those who committed the crimes, and second with those who let them into the US or tolerated their continued presence in the US.

Almost all of those arrested during the SWAT standoff last week and in the months leading up to it are believed to be illegal immigrants, Smith said. One was confirmed to be from the United States, he said.

Most claim to be from Mexico, while others are believed to be from El Salvador or Guatemala. The U.S. Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement will help Houston police determine the men's identities and nationalities.

Police said more killings may be linked to the gang. They confirmed they are reviewing at least four other homicides but declined to give details on those cases Tuesday.

Many of the 20 arrested were caught last week when police went to an apartment in the 6400 block of West Bellfort to serve four arrest warrants for robbery and aggravated assault.

MS-13 members have apparently compiled quite a laundry list of murders throughout Houston.

Police said they linked the homicides to the same gang when five homicide investigators began studying the cases full-time last month, looking at ballistics evidence, witnesses statements and interviews with people. They started with a list of crimes linked by one gun.

During this three-week initiative, three more homicides occurred, involving the same gang — the toddler's shooting death in Huffman and two slayings in Houston.

Smith said he was surprised to find this many people involved in this much criminal activity in such a short time span.

'They're a very vicious group, like most of the gangs when they come to our attention ... Obviously, they have very little regard for human life,' Smith said.

MS-13 has little regard for human life, and the Bush administration and Congress have little regard for American law, territorial integrity and the safety and protection of the American people. How does permitting the unmitigated invasion violent foreign gangs into American cities advance the "culture of life" to which President Bush pays so much lip-service?