Nineteen suspected members of the violent street gang, Mara Salvatrucha (or MS-13) have been indicted on federal racketeering charges in Maryland.
The indictments, released Thursday, accuse the men of murders, kidnappings and other gang-related crimes from April 2003 to June of this year. The 19 suspected gang members are accused of six murders and several attempted murders.
The crimes took place in suburban Maryland, outside of Washington, D.C.
The gang is traditionally made up of immigrants from El Salvador. Its U.S. activities originated in Los Angeles in the 1980s. An estimated 10,000 members are in the United States.
Federal agents and local police officers arrested many of the indicted gang members Thursday. The indictments are the latest attempt by the federal government to target the organization.
Some information for this report provided by AP and AFP.