16-Year-Old Gang Leader Convicted For Gaithersburg Mall Attack

MONTGOMERY VILLAGE, MD — A 17-year-old man from Montgomery Village was convicted Thursday for organizing two assaults on two victims for wearing the wrong gang colors near the Lakeforest Mall, Montgomery Community Media reports.

Jose Zaldivar-Medina, a member of MS-13 gang, faces 63 years in prison for the April 2016 assault on the two victims and other charges. At the time of the assault, Zaldivar was 16.

On April 7, 2016, four MS-13 members saw two victims at the Gaithersburg mall wearing red. The MS-13 members thought the victims were members of a rival gang because of their color choice.

Zaldivar ordered the other members to go after the victims with a knife, assault them and slash the tires of the victim's cars in the parking lot outside of the mall. Neither of the victims were gang members.

Prosectors said one of Zaldivar's subordinates chased one of the victims around the parking lot with a knife. The victim was running in a dead sprint and made his way into the mall before the attacker turned to the other victim and slashed him in the buttocks before fleeing.

“Rank in this gang has nothing to do with age,” said Montgomery State’s Attorney John McCarthy. “It has to do with your reputation and how you have established yourself in service to the gang.”

According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, MS-13 is a national and transnational gang mainly made up of immigrants or descendants from El Salvador.

MS-13 has grown to be one of the largest street gangs in the U.S., and operates throughout Montgomery, Price George's and Frederick counties. Montgomery Community Media reports Zaldivar was born in Honduras.

MS-13 members are required to commit acts of violence to maintain membership and discipline within the gang. One of the principal rules of MS-13 is that its members must attack and kill rivals, known as “chavalas,” whenever possible, the ICE says.

Zaldivar's immigration status is unknown as of Monday. Federal agents had not lodged a detainer against him at the Montgomery County jail as of Friday, jail officials told The Washington Post.

Photo: Montgomery Community Media