A Landover Hills, Maryland man was sentenced to life in prison for his involvement in MS-13 gang activities. Jose Domingo Ordonez-Zometa, 33, also known as Felon, was found guilty of racketeering, murder in aid of racketeering, and conspiring to destroy evidence.
According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Ordonez-Zometa was a member of the Los Ghettos Criminales Salvatruchas (LGCS or Ghettos) clique of MS-13. He and his co-conspirators, Jose Rafael Ortega-Ayala and Jose Henry Hernandez-Garcia, were involved in violent acts, including murder, destruction of evidence, and witness tampering.
The MS-13 gang operates primarily in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area, including Maryland and Virginia. Membership in the gang is based on a hierarchical structure, where members are expected to protect the gang’s name, reputation, and status by any means necessary, including intimidation and violence.
On March 8, 2019, Ordonez-Zometa ordered the murder of a fellow MS-13 member, Victim 1, who had been suspected of cooperating with the police. The member was stabbed and killed in Ordonez-Zometa’s basement. After the murder, Ordonez-Zometa and his co-conspirators attempted to conceal and destroy evidence of the crime.
Ordonez-Zometa, Ortega-Ayala, and Hernandez-Garcia were convicted at trial in December 2022. Ordonez-Zometa was sentenced to life in prison, while Ortega-Ayala and Hernandez-Garcia face mandatory life sentences.
The FBI, Homeland Security Investigations, and the Metropolitan Police Department investigated the case. Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite, Jr., U.S. Attorney Erek L. Barron for the District of Maryland, and Assistant Director Luis Quesada of the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division made the announcement.
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Key Facts
- State: Maryland
- Category: Organized Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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