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MS-13 gang members convicted of trafficking 13-year-old girl – New York Post

An ex member of the MS-13 gang is pictured at Santa Ana prison, 60 km northwest of San Salvador, on May 21, 2019. – Former members of Salvadoran gangs -mostly of the Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13) and Barrio 18- claim to be willing to endure a painful process with laser technology, that can take years, to erase tattoos they now say were a “youth mistake”. (Photo by Oscar Rivera / AFP) (Photo credit should read OSCAR RIVERA/AFP via Getty Images)

Seven members and associates of the MS-13 street gang have been convicted of in federal court after taking in a 13-year-old runaway and coercing her into commercial sex acts in Maryland and Virginia.

The seven defendants all face a mandatory minimum prison term of 15 years when they are sentenced in November.

The U.S. Attorney's Officer for the Eastern District of Virginia, which prosecuted the case, announced the jury verdict Friday,

According to an FBI affidavit, the girl ran away from a youth home in Fairfax in 2018. She was sex trafficked for nearly two months in that year before she was recovered by the bureau's and Human Trafficking task force. The trafficking occurred in Woodridge, Virginia, and Mount Rainier, Maryland.

She was also beaten on two separate occasions 26 times on her backside with a baseball bat — once when she was initiated into the gang and once when she was accused of stealing from another gang member.

The seven defendants — six men and a woman — lived in suburban Maryland and Northern Virginia and ranged in age from 22 to 50.

 

This “Eyes on Trafficking” story is reprinted from its original location.

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EYES ON TRAFFICKING

This “Eyes on Trafficking” story is reprinted from its original online location.

ABOUT PBJ LEARNING

PBJ Learning is a leading provider of online human trafficking training, focusing on awareness and prevention education. Their interactive Human Trafficking Essentials online course is used worldwide to educate professionals and individuals how to recognize human trafficking and how to respond to potential victims. Learn on any web browser (even your mobile phone) at any time.

More stories like this can be found in your PBJ Learning Knowledge Vault.