Cesar Humberto Lopez-Larios, MS-13 Leadership, New York 2024

High-Ranking MS-13 Leader Arrested on Terrorism Charges

CENTRAL ISLIP, NY - Yesterday afternoon, in federal court in Houston, Texas, Cesar Humberto Lopez-Larios, also known as “Grenas de Stoners” and ”Oso de Stoners,” was ordered to be transferred in custody to the Eastern District of New York where he, together with 13 other high-ranking MS-13 leaders, are charged with directing the transnational criminal organization’s criminal activities in the United States, El Salvador, Mexico, and elsewhere over the past two decades.

Lopez-Larios, who had been a fugitive for more than three years, was arrested by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) on June 9, 2024 when he arrived at George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston, Texas. Specifically, Lopez-Larios is charged with conspiracy to provide and conceal material support to terrorists, conspiracy to commit acts of terrorism transcending national boundaries, conspiracy to finance terrorism, and narco-terrorism conspiracy.

Lopez-Larios will be arraigned in the Eastern District of New York at a later date. Breon Peace, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, Krysti Hawkins, Acting Assistant Director-in-Charge of the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office, and Ivan J. Arvelo, Special Agent-in-Charge, HSI’s New York Field Office, announced Lopez-Larios’ arrest.

“The arrest of Lopez-Larios, who is one of the most senior leaders of MS-13 in the world, is a significant achievement for law enforcement and another crucial step in the dismantling of this international criminal enterprise,” stated United States Attorney Peace. “The defendant will soon face a reckoning in a federal courtroom on Long Island where, acting on his orders, MS-13 has spilled so much blood and turned communities into war zones.”

The defendant, Cesar Humberto Lopez-Larios, also known as “Grenas de Stoners” and ”Oso de Stoners,” is a high-ranking leader of La Mara Salvatrucha, also known as “MS-13.” He was arrested on June 9, 2024, at George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston, Texas, and is currently in custody. Lopez-Larios is charged with conspiracy to provide and conceal material support to terrorists, conspiracy to commit acts of terrorism transcending national boundaries, conspiracy to finance terrorism, and narco-terrorism conspiracy.

Defendant: Cesar Humberto Lopez-Larios. Charges: Conspiracy to provide and conceal material support to terrorists, conspiracy to commit acts of terrorism transcending national boundaries, conspiracy to finance terrorism, and narco-terrorism conspiracy. City and State: Houston, Texas. Date: June 9, 2024. Outcome: Currently in custody pending arraignment in the Eastern District of New York at a later date.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-edny/pr/fugitive-high-ranking-ms-13-leader-arrested-terrorism-charges