MS-13 Member Whined About Gang Minutes Before Brutal Attack: Feds

NEW YORK, NY – An MS-13-ordered hit left a suspected Latin Kings gang member brutally beaten and stabbed in a New York City jail – just minutes after one of the accused MS-13 members whined to his girlfriend that he couldn't escape the brutal network, a criminal complaint claims.

Dennis Cabrera, also known as "Panda," was recorded talking to his girlfriend in Manhattan Detention Center's visitation room just 20 minutes before the attack on Oct. 22, 2018, the complaint says.

"A Latin King came in here, you know, and we have let him be but now these guys want to get him and they want to stab him," he was recorded saying.

"...There's only three of us here right now. Supposedly the three of us have to do it. ...If not, the one that would be stabbed would be me. And all because of the d--- gang.

"I'm telling you that sometimes I feel like taking my own d--- life. This thing is garbage."

Shortly afterwards, surveillance video at the jail showed Cabrera, from The Bronx, and two others – Luis Rivas, known as "Inquieto" and "Kiko" who is from Jamaica, Queens, and Javier Rodriguez, known as "Joker" from Flushing, Queens – kicking, punching and stabbing another prisoner with a makeshift knife, the complaint says.

At the end of the attack, Rivas flashed a MS013 hand sign at the victim, the complaint says.

The victim suffered multiple stab wounds to his torso, back and arms, prosecutors said.

The three were set to be arraigned Friday at Brooklyn Federal Court on charges of assault in aid of racketeering. If convicted, they face up to 20 years in prison. The three were already in jail facing charges for violent crimes.

The criminal complaint described MS-13 as a gang that members are in for life and they're expected to carry out directive issued from MS-13 leaders, including attacks on witnesses and rival gang members.

MS-13, which originated in El Salvador, has been active in the United States since the 1980s and there are an estimated 10,000 members active in the country, according to a 2017 fact sheet from the United States Department of Justice. The gang is particularly evident in Long Island and Queens.

On Feb. 3, a suspected MS-13 member shot a man to death during a fight on a Jackson Heights subway station, police said.

ProPublica reporter Hannah Dreier, who has followed the gang's actions in the U.S. since 2017, wrote in June that the U.S. numbers make up a small portion of MS-13's 1.4 million members. The gang has become a target of President Donald Trump and federal law enforcement in recent years.

Lead image shows Luis Rivas via U.S. Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of New York