'Sadistic' Slaughter Of 4 Young Men Gets Gang Member 50+ Years In Prison: DOJ

BRENTWOOD, NY — A gang member belonging to the violent criminal organization MS-13 was sentenced to 55 years in prison for his part in the brutal murders of four young men in 2017, federal officials announced Wednesday.

Omar "Anticristo Antonio Villalta, a member of the Guanacos Lil Cycos Salvatruchas (Guanacos) was sentenced by United States District Judge Gary R. Brown after pleading guilty to racketeering, including predicate acts of murder and conspiracy to murder rival gang members, on May 26, 2023, officials said.

The charges stemmed from his involvement in the April 11, 2017 murders of Justin Llivicura, 16, Michael Lopez, 20, Jorge Tigre, 18, and Jefferson Villalobos, 18, who were hacked to death in a Central Islip park, and the July 3, 2017 murder of Marvin Rivera Guevara, in Charlottsville, VA, officials said.

"Omar Antonio Villalta, an MS-13 member, repeatedly played judge, jury and executioner by unlawfully issuing death sentences to five victims perceived to be disrespectful or rivals to the gang," said FBI Assistant Director in Charge Raia. "These slaughters reflect the gang’s gruesome retributive tactics while demonstrating utter disregard for life with the rapid succession of murders."

According to the investigation, the four young men were lured to their deaths by Villalta and more than a dozen other members and associates of the MS-13. Specifically, two female associates of MS-13, Leniz Escobar and Keyli Gomez, lured the victims and another male to a community park in Central Islip where they were attacked by members and associates of the gang, including Josue Portillo, Freiry Martinez, Alexis Hernandez, Edwin Rodriguez, Sergio Segovia-Pineda, Henry Salmeron, Anderson Sanchez, and others, officials said.

Officials said the gang members thought the victims were members of a rival gang because they'd offended them by posting photos on social media wearing accessories and flashing hand signs that signified membership in the MS-13 gang.

After the photos were brought to their attention by Escobar and Gomez, Villalta and several other MS-13 members confirmed the young men did not belong to MS-13 and made a plan to kill them, officials said. On the night of the murders, Villalta and over a dozen other MS-13 members and associates gathered in the woods adjacent to the park and waited for the two women to lure the victims there, officials said.

Officials said Villalta gave weapons to certain gang members, including knives and machetes, while others took clubs made of tree limbs as the group waited for the victims to arrive.

Upon arrival, the MS-13 members surrounded the boys in the dark. One of the five successfully fled while Llivicura, Lopez, Tigre and Villalobos were surrounded by MS-13 members, who attacked them with machetes, knives, an axe and wooden clubs, officials said.

After the attack, the MS-13 members dragged the victims’ bodies to a more secluded spot in the woods, piled them up and then fled, officials said. The victims’ bodies were discovered the following evening.

In the days following the murders, Villalta fled to Charlottesville, VA, where he connected with local MS-13 members and began work at a pizzeria with a fellow gang member, officials said. Within days of starting work, Villalta reported to other MS-13 members, including the leader of the Guanacos clique, that a co-worker, Marvin Rivera Guevara, had flashed an 18th Street gang hand sign indicating his membership in one of the MS-13’s principal rivals, officials said.

According to officials, Villalta was given authorization to kill Guevara and a plan was developed to murder him. On the evening of July 3, 2017, they convinced the victim to drive with him to a remote location under the guise of smoking marijuana and meeting women, officials said. Instead, Villalta and other gang members forced the victim at gunpoint deeper into the woods where they attacked him with a machete and knives before throwing his body off a nearby bridge into the river below, officials said.

More than a dozen MS-13 members and associates have been charged in connection with the April 11 quadruple murder, officials said. Of them, Villalta is the sixth person to be sentenced; Josue Portillo was sentenced to 55 years; Freiry Martinez and Leniz Escobar were sentenced to 50 years in prison; Anderson Sanchez got 32 years; Alexis Hernandez was sentenced to 29 years; and the remaining defendants are awaiting sentencing, officials said.

"The torture carried out at the hands of Villalta was inconceivable and sadistic— all because of his devotion to MS-13,” said Suffolk County Police Commissioner Kevin Catalina. "His crimes sent shock waves through our communities but thanks to our collaboration with our law enforcement partners, Villalta was apprehended, and we will continue to target violent gang members who are a threat public safety."