Two MS-13 Members Sentenced to 55 and 48 Years in Prison for Committing Two Murders in Queens

Yesterday and today in federal court in Brooklyn, defendants Ramiro Gutierrez and Tito Martinez Alvarenga were sentenced to 55 years and 48 years in prison, respectively, for their participation in the murders of Abel Mosso in 2019 and Victor Alvarenga in 2018. Both Gutierrez and Tito Martinez Alvarenga pleaded guilty to these crimes in January 2025.

Joseph Nocella, Jr., United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, James C. Barnacle, Jr., Assistant Director in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office (FBI), Michael Alfonso, Acting Special Agent in Charge, Homeland Security Investigations, New York (HSI New York), and Jessica S. Tisch, Commissioner, New York City Police Department (NYPD), announced the sentences.

"In committing these terrible murders, these defendants and MS-13 put entire communities at risk, including innocent commuters," stated United States Attorney Nocella. "They will spend decades in prison for their crimes, and our Office and our law enforcement partners will keep working to ensure that any gang member who does not learn from their example is similarly held accountable."

Mr. Nocella also thanked the Queens County District Attorney's Office for their valuable coordination with the investigation.

"The defendants' ruthless actions as MS-13 members - including orchestrating the shooting of Victor Alvarenga, and the cold-blooded killing of Abel Mosso on a busy subway platform - have not only led to the loss of innocent lives but also spread fear, trauma, and devastation throughout our communities," said Acting Special Agent in Charge Alfonso. "These horrific crimes underscore the urgent need for continued coordinated law enforcement action to confront gang violence. HSI New York, together with our partners, will leave no stone unturned in protecting New Yorkers and holding those responsible fully accountable."

"As part of a vicious, ruthless international gang, these two defendants terrorized innocent people for years," said NYPD Commissioner Tisch. "Now, they will pay for their crimes with lengthy prison sentences. The NYPD will continue to pursue justice against anyone who threatens our communities, and New York City is a safer place today with these two convicted murderers behind bars. I thank the U.S. Attorney's Office for their continued partnership, and all the NYPD investigators who worked to hold these violent criminals accountable."

Murder of Victor Alvarenga

In the early morning hours of November 4, 2018, MS-13 members shot and killed Victor Alvarenga near his home in Flushing, Queens. As proven at the trial of four co-defendants, Edenilson Velasquez Larin, a national MS-13 leader, gave the order to kill Alvarenga, and the murder was overseen by Jose Espinoza Sanchez. On the night of the murder, Gutierrez, Tito Martinez Alvarenga, Espinoza Sanchez and two other MS-13 members waited for Alvarenga near his home. When Alvarenga arrived home, MS-13 members shot him multiple times. Tito Martinez Alvarenga had called Alvarenga multiple times prior to the murder, and to conceal his involvement, Tito Martinez Alvarenga took Alvarenga's phone from Alvarenga as Alvarenga lay dying. Gutierrez served as the getaway driver and helped plan the murder.

Murder of Abel Mosso

As also proven at the trial of four co-defendants, in the early afternoon of February 3, 2019, Gutierrez, Tito Martinez Alvarenga and Victor Lopez followed Mosso, whom they believed to be a member of the rival 18th Street gang, onto the 7 train at the Main Street station in Flushing, Queens. Lopez and Tito Martinez Alvarenga assaulted Mosso inside a subway car and then dragged him out onto the platform at the 90th Street station in Jackson Heights, Queens. The defendants pulled out a gun, but Mosso wrestled it away. One of the defendants shouted in Spanish, "Nobody get involved, we're MS-13, we're going to kill him." Gutierrez then grabbed the gun from Mosso and shot him multiple times in the head, killing him.

These sentencings are the latest in a series of federal prosecutions by the United States Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of New York targeting members of the MS-13. MS-13's leadership was based in El Salvador and Honduras, but the gang has thousands of members across the United States. Since 2003, hundreds of MS-13 members, including dozens of clique leaders, have been convicted on federal felony charges in the Eastern District of New York. A majority of those MS-13 members have been convicted on federal racketeering charges for participating in murders, attempted murders and assaults. Since 2010, this Office has obtained indictments charging MS-13 members with carrying out more than 75 murders in the district and has convicted dozens of MS-13 leaders and members in connection with those murders. These prosecutions are the product of investigations led by our law enforcement partners including HSI and the FBI's Safe Streets Task Force, comprising agents and officers of the FBI and NYPD.

The government's case is being handled by the Office's Organized Crime and Gangs Section. Assistant United States Attorneys Jonathan Siegel, Anna L. Karamigios and Kamil Ammari are in charge of the prosecution, with the assistance of Paralegal Specialists Timothy Migliaro and Danielle Barber.

The Defendants:

RAMIRO GUTIERREZ (also known as "Cara de Malo")
Age: 31
Flushing, New York

TITO MARTINEZ ALVARENGA (also known as "Imprudente")
Age: 24
Flushing, New York

E.D.N.Y. Docket No. 20-CR-228 (S-3) (LDH)