Hudson County MS-13 Gang Leader Admits He Tried to Kill Two Local Brothers

A Hudson County man and member of the international criminal street gang MS-13 admitted in court today that he tried to kill rival gang members. He was indicted for racketeering crimes, including conspiracy to commit murder.

Carlos Valdez AKA Catracho, 27, also admitted to being the leader of an MS-13 clique operating in Hudson County, known as the “Hudson Locotes Salvatruchas,” U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced today.

Valdez and other gang leaders in northern New Jersey hatched a plot to murder two Hudson County brothers in November of 2013, according to court statements and case files.

Law enforcement officials learned of the murder plot during the course of its investigation and arrested certain gang members, including Valdez, before it could be completed, U.S. Attorney Fishman stated.

Ties to MS-13 Gang Leaders

According to Fishman, Valdez sought approval for the murder plot from Joel Antonio Cortez, a/k/a “Pee Wee,” a high-ranking member of Mara Salvatrucha’s (MS-13) national leadership, who recruited Valdez in the fall of 2013 to join the “national program.” This was a scheme to consolidate the gang’s cliques under a single, nationwide organization devoted to violence, extortion, and drug trafficking.

At the time, Cortez was incarcerated in a California state prison and used a contraband cellular phone to remain in contact with Mara Salvatrucha

members on the East Coast. Cortez served as a top deputy for Jose Juan Rodriguez-Juarez, a/k/a “Sacerdote,” the leader of Mara Salvatrucha in the United States and the primary organizer of the new “national program.”

Up to 20 Years in Prison

Valdez pled guilty in Newark federal court to engaging in a racketeering conspiracy, and conspiracy to possess firearms in furtherance of a crime violence.

Both of the charges to which Valdez pleaded guilty carry a maximum potential penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Sentencing is scheduled for March 16, 2015.

“This investigation involved multiple FBI Field Offices, with substantial assistance provided by the FBI Field Office in Los Angeles,” Fishman said, expressing his gratitude to the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Acting Prosecutor Gaetano T. Gregory, and the Union County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Acting Prosecutor Grace Park, for their work on this case.

Fishman also acknowledged the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the

Central District of California for its assistance in the ongoing investigation, and the special agents of the FBI under the direction of Special Agent in Charge, Aaron T. Ford.