Man Pleads Guilty In MS-13 Assault With Bats In Falls Church Area

FALLS CHURCH, VA — A final defendant pleaded guilty Thursday in the case of an MS-13 beating with baseball bats at a Falls Church area park.

Marlon Edgardo Huezo Rivera, 19, of Falls Church, pleaded guilty to assault with a dangerous weapon in aid of racketeering activity. According to prosecutors, he is a known member or associate of the Chilangueras clique of MS-13 in Northern Virginia.

Prosecutors say Rivera and other gang members lured the victim to James Lee Park in October 2018 under the pretense of smoking marijuana and hanging out. But the gang members planned to assault him, believing the victim cooperated with law enforcement, falsely claimed to be an MS-13 member and made disparaging remarks about the Silvas clique of MS-13. The group beat the victim with baseball bats, fists and feet for about three minutes. The victim suffered two broken arms, broken elbow, broken finger and blunt force trauma injuries to the torso. He remained in the hospital for days.

Rivera and about a dozen other MS-13 members were involved in the assault. Earlier this month, Jose Ochoa Del-Cid, 21, of Falls Church, who had a leadership role in the attack, was sentenced to more than five and a half years in prison.

Rivera faces up to 20 years in prison. He will be sentenced on Nov. 22.