Mara Salvatrucha 13 Essay

Introduction
Mara Salvatrucha 13 better known on the streets as MS-13 is an unfamiliar gang for many Americans, but to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and local law enforcement agencies Mara Salvatrucha 13 is a growing global menace of violently ruthless criminals whose numbers are multiplying exponentially. The band of criminals are not only making their presence felt in the United States but they are deeply rooted in their country of origin, El Salvador and throughout Central America to include Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, and Nicaragua. From drug and human trafficking across the border, to murders, kidnappings, prostitution rings and drug distribution within the United

The earlier members referred to themselves as MSS-13 Mara Salvatrucha Stoners, the 13 is used to show homage and alliance to the Mexican Mafia (La EMe), an equally notorious prison gang (Forrester, 2017). Much debate is tied to the actual meaning/translation of the gang’s name, but as the gang evolved it removed “Stoners” from the name. The early members of the gang were young El Salvadorian immigrant youths that banded together to protect themselves from other dominant Hispanic and African American gangs in 1980’s Los Angeles. Similarly, to other gangs of the era, the members of Mara Salvatrucha 13 were involved in petty gang violence and minor crimes that were used to fund their drug use and parties. The criminal acts resulted in members of Mara Salvatrucha 13 being sent to juvenile detention centers and/or prison where they interacted with other gang members. The time in prison or detention centers served as a sort of criminal education where the members of Mara Salvatrucha 13 learned the trade craft used by more seasoned and organized gangs such as The Mexican Mafia. When released the boys that went into custody came out criminally educated men focused on earning and making a name for themselves and their gang on the

The criminal exploits of MS-13 has gained the attention of many of the three letter agencies in the government, the president, and has even resulted in Attorney General Jeff Sessions vowing to crack down on gang violence. Much is being done to track down members of the notorious Mara Salvatrucha 13 gang, the FBI, ATF, DEA, ICE, and the Justice department have pooled their resources in addition to sharing intel that has resulted in the arrest of more than 1,400 members (Chang, 2017). In addition to arrest deportation of many of those arrested who are illegal are underway. The work to identify, apprehend, and deport the members of Mara Salvatrucha is a small win when the reality that the deported members get a free ride back to their country where the gang is estimated to have 30,000 members waiting a willing to replace gang members who were deported