A federal grand jury in Maryland indicted eight members of La Mara Salvatrucha, or MS-13, with racketeering conspiracy involving the murder of a witness, extortion and money laundering, according to the Department of Justice.

“Witness retaliation will not be tolerated,” said Erek L. Barron, U.S. attorney for the District of Maryland. “These MS-13 members not only extorted money from community members to support the gang — both in Maryland and in El Salvador — they also allegedly killed an individual who was cooperating with law enforcement.”

The names of the defendants are: Brayan Alexander Torres, 28, of Adelphi, Md.; Agustino Eugenio Rivas Rodriguez, 24, of Silver Spring, Md.; Hernan Yanes-Rivera, 20, of Adelphi; Franklyn Edgardo Sanchez, 24, of Adelphi; Brian Samir Zelaya Mejia, 23, of Hyattsville, Md.; Miguel Angel Ramirez, 21, of Adelphi; Jorge Isaac Argueta Chica, 21, of Gaithersburg, Md.; and Diego Fabrisio Angel-Artiga, 22, of Hyattsville.

Prosecutors call MS-13 an "international criminal organization composed primarily of immigrants or descendants of immigrants from El Salvador," and they allege it operates throughout the United States.

Officials say MS-13 members commit crimes to maintain membership and they are required to attack rivals "whenever possible."

The smaller MS-13 clique that's the focus of the indictment "extorted multiple victims" and forwarded that money to MS-13 members in El Salvador.

Prosecutors say Yanes-Rivera and Sanchez also "murdered an individual in retaliation for the victim’s cooperation with law enforcement."

The indictments were returned in December and unsealed earlier this month.

If convicted, each defendant faces up to life in federal prison.