MS-13 Gang Member Sentenced To Prison For 2016 Murder

GAITHERSBURG, MD — A Gaithersburg man with reputed ties to the MS-13 gang was sentenced to prison on Monday for conspiring to kidnap and murder a man he believed was a rival gang member, according to prosecutors.

Jose Israel Melendez-Rivera, 21 — also known as "Liar" — faces 20 years in federal prison, followed by five years of supervised release.

Prosecutors say Melendez-Rivera admitted to participating in the 2016 murder of Jordy Mejia, so his co-defendant —Neris Moreno-Martinez, 22, of New Jersey — could achieve the rank of "chequeo." Someone is called a "chequeo" when they've reached the final level before officially becoming an MS-13 gang member.

Moreno-Martinez, however, was concerned that there were not enough forests in the Garden State to cover up the crime, officials said.

According to his plea agreement, Melendez-Rivera and Moreno-Martinez created a fake social media account under the name of "Shaila Smith" and reached out to Mejia in October of 2016. For the next two weeks, the pair posed as "Shaila Smith" and tricked Mejia into thinking that "she" was romantically interested in him. The goal: lure Mejia to Maryland and kill him.

On Oct. 15, 2016, Moreno-Martinez traveled to meet Melendez-Rivera. Mejia, who had already been given Melendez-Rivera's Gaithersburg address, was en-route to meet "Shaila Smith." He was told someone would pick him up once he arrived.

In the meantime, Melendez-Rivera drove Moreno-Martinez and a third co-defendant — 23-year-old Reynaldo Alexis Granados-Vasquez, of Gaithersburg — to a residence near a wooded area. Prosecutors say the two waited there for Mejia.

"Thinking that Melendez-Rivera was Mejia, Moreno-Martinez and Granados-Vasquez accidentally struck Melendez-Rivera with a brick or rock and Mejia then ran toward the road. As detailed in the plea agreement, Granados-Vasquez caught up to Mejia, kicking him into a small stream, where Melendez-Rivera and Moreno-Martinez held Mejia's head under the water, drowning him," prosecutors said.

The three men then carried Mejia's body into the woods and dug a shallow grave, according to officials. They then took turns stabbing the corpse with machetes.

Mejia's body was found by hikers in November.

All three men have admitted to committing the crime. To date, the only person who has been sentenced is Melendez-Rivera.

Pleading guilty to the kidnapping conspiracy, Moreno-Martinez and Granados-Vasquez are scheduled to appear in court for sentencing on June 25 and July 9, 2019, respectively.