COLUMBUS (AP) — Authorities say the leader of a violent gang has been sentenced to life in prison for his role in the killings of five people.
U.S. Attorney Benjamin Glassman says defendant Martin Neftali Aguilar-Rivera directed the central Ohio branch of the El Salvador-based MS-13 gang from 2015 to 2017.
“Under Aguilar-Rivera’s leadership, MS-13 members in Columbus became more organized, more violent, and more ruthless. He deserves to spend the rest of his life in prison,” Glassman said.
Defense attorney Diane Menashe called the outcome a just sentence given that Aguilar-Rivera faced the possibility of the death penalty. She said he accepted responsibility for his crimes.
Aguilar-Rivera was among 29 individuals charged in central Ohio recent years in a racketeering conspiracy including murder, attempted murder, assault, drug trafficking, money laundering and other charges.
Aguilar-Rivera, who also went by the alias “Momia,” admitted in July to his role in the murders of a confidential informant in Perry County in 2006 and rival gang members in Columbus between 2008 and 2016. Some of the crimes involved the use of machetes, hatchets and hammers and, in two of the cases, the victims were buried in a park, Glassman said.