Crime & Safety

Reston Woman Pleads Guilty In Brutal Gang Murder: Report

Cindy Blanco Hernandez, 19, of Reston reportedly pleaded guilty to abduction and faces decades in prison.

A Reston woman involved in the gang-related murder of a 15-year-old girl in Fairfax County has pleaded guilty, according to a report.

The Washington Post reports that Cindy Blanco Hernandez, 19, of Reston pleaded guilty to abduction, and she faces up to 20 or 30 years in prison when she faces sentencing May 11, 2018.

She was one of 18 young people arrested in connection with the brutal murder of 15-year-old Damaris A. Reyes Rivas of Gaithersburg, Md., in a Springfield park in January. They were believed to be members of the infamous gang MS-13, and prosecutors think they lured Reyes Rivas to the park to exact revenge, as they blamed her for the death of Christian Sosa Rivas, the leader of their clique.

Find out what's happening in Restonfor free with the latest updates from Patch.

The group reportedly threatened to cut off her fingers and set her on fire before they killed her as she stood freezing in the cold. Her killers recorded her last minutes on cell phone videos.

Attorneys for Hernandez, the Reston resident, and two other teens say that their clients didn't participate in the slaying of the girl and weren't aware of plans to kill her, according to the Post. Hernandez is expected to be a witness in the upcoming trials of three other defendants.

Find out what's happening in Restonfor free with the latest updates from Patch.

Reyes Rivas was lured to the park, thinking she was going to smoke marijuana, but found gang members waiting who immediately began interrogating her about the death of Sosa Rivas. They accused her of luring Sosa Rivas to a park in Dumfries where he was slain around New Year's Eve.

Reyes Rivas was taken to another park, beaten, and then stabbed 13 times, prosecutors say.

Image via of Reston resident Cindy Blanco Hernandez via Fairfax County Police

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