Accused MS-13 Kingpin Is From Laurel: Report

A man who has been called by prosecutors the highest ranking member on the East Coast of the notorious MS-13 gang is from Laurel, according to a report.

CNN reports that Laurel resident Miguel Angel Corea Diaz, 35, was arraigned Thursday on felony drug trafficking and conspiracy charges.

Corea Diaz allegedly helped organize heroin deals with the Mexican Mafia, and helped traffic narcotics to customers on behalf of the MS-13 gang.

"By arresting the head of the Northeast faction of MS-13, we have crippled MS-13's operations in both New York and El Salvador," James Hunt, special agent in charge of the New York Division of the Drug Enforcement Administration, was quoted by CNN as saying.

MS-13 was started by Salvadoran immigrants who fled the country during its civil war and settled in Los Angeles. Since then, the gang's influence has spread coast to coast, and immigrants from other Central and South American countries have joined it, the FBI says.

(Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)