BOSTON - A Chelsea man pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Boston in connection with assaulting members of a rival gang.
Kevin Ayala, a/k/a “Gallito," 23, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to conduct enterprise affairs through a pattern of racketeering activity, more commonly referred to as a RICO conspiracy. Judge F. Dennis Saylor IV scheduled sentencing for May 25, 2017.
After a three-year, multi-agency investigation, Ayala was one of 61 individuals charged in a superseding indictment targeting the criminal activities of alleged leaders, members, and associates of MS-13 in Massachusetts. In documents previously filed with the Court, MS-13 was identified as a violent transnational criminal organization whose branches or “cliques" operate throughout the United States, including Massachusetts, as well as in Central America. MS-13 members are required to commit acts of violence to maintain membership and discipline within the group, such as attacking and murdering gang rivals and individuals believed to be cooperating with law enforcement.
Ayala was identified as a member of MS-13’s Enfermos Criminales Salvatrucha clique operating in Chelsea, Mass. Ayala admitted that in April 2014, he engaged in an aggravated assault upon two members of the rival 18th Street gang in Chelsea.
The charging statute provides a sentence of no greater than 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Acting United States Attorney William D. Weinreb; Harold H. Shaw, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Field Division; Matthew Etre, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in Boston; and Colonel Richard D. McKeon, Superintendent of the Massachusetts State Police made the announcement. Assistance was provided by Thomas Turco, Commissioner of the Massachusetts Department of Corrections; Essex County Sheriff and Lynn Police Chief Kevin F. Coppinger; Suffolk County Sheriff Steven W. Tompkins; Suffolk County District Attorney Daniel F. Conley; Middlesex County District Attorney Marian T. Ryan; Essex County District Attorney Jonathan Blodgett; Boston Police Commissioner William Evans; Chelsea Police Chief Brian A. Kyes; Everett Police Chief Steven A. Mazzie; Revere Police Chief Joseph Cafarelli; and Somerville Police Chief David Fallon.
The details contained in the indictments are allegations. The defendants are presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
