MS-13 in Ohio, 15 Arrested

(Columbus, Ohio) Fifteen members of the notoriously violent Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13) gang were arrested yesterday by Columbus Police officers and Homeland Security agents.

The arrests of 14 men and one woman were made between 3 and 7 p.m. on the North Side. Tamarack Circle and areas around I-71 and Rt. 161 were targeted, officials said.

All 15 are in custody at the Franklin County jail and elsewhere, said Cmdr. Jeffrey Blackwell of the Columbus Police Strategic Response Bureau. Their names weren't available late tonight.

Everyone arrested today was an illegal immigrant and affiliated with the MS-13 gang, which originated in El Salvador, he said. The FBI and Franklin County sheriff's office also contributed to the arrests, Blackwell said.

"MS-13 is a Hispanic gang notorious for violence," he said. "With the growing Hispanic population here, this gang has moved in and done its thing. Over the last several months there's been a proliferation of felonious-type crimes."

Blackwell said the gang is suspected in two slayings, though he wouldn't give details. None of the people arrested had been charged with murder tonight.

The specific charges weren't available, but Blackwell said the gang members have been responsible for an escalation of the drug trade, robbery and burglary, among other crimes.

It's estimated that MS-13 has more than 100 members in the Columbus area.

It would be hard to dispute the contention that lax border security is the reason an international criminal gang, MS-13, has been able to set up a significant operating base in Columbus and, by the way, other American cities.