International News: Mass trial of 485 alleged MS-13 members concludes in El Salvador

By Zoila Palma:  A three-month mass trial involving 485 alleged members of the MS-13 gang concluded today in El Salvador, with prosecutors delivering their closing arguments and requesting the maximum possible sentences. The defendants face charges including homicide, extortion, drug trafficking, arms offenses, and human trafficking for crimes allegedly committed between 2012 and 2022, AP reports. According to the Public Prosecutor’s Office, the accused are linked to 14,420 crimes, including 444 killings. Prosecutors also alleged that the gang used about 1,200 children in criminal activities, exploited 638 women, and operated through 32 groups, two of which were based outside El Salvador. During the proceedings, prosecutors presented audio recordings they said captured gang leaders ordering killings and other crimes. The trial was held virtually, with the defendants appearing by video from the Terrorism Confinement Center (CECOT), the high-security prison built under President Nayib Bukele’s administration. The proceedings took place under El Salvador’s state of emergency, introduced in March 2022, and made possible by a 2023 legal reform allowing suspected gang members to be tried collectively based on gang affiliation or territory. A verdict has not yet been announced. The post International News: Mass trial of 485 alleged MS-13 members concludes in El Salvador appeared first on Belize News and Opinion on www.breakingbelizenews.com.