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| 5 Gang Members Convicted of Hacking Innocent Teenager to Death | |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| [What you need to know to start the day: Get New York Today in your inbox.] | [What you need to know to start the day: Get New York Today in your inbox.] |
| Members of the Trinitarios gang were hunting for enemies in the Bronx last summer when they found a 15-year-old boy on his phone and walking alone. | Members of the Trinitarios gang were hunting for enemies in the Bronx last summer when they found a 15-year-old boy on his phone and walking alone. |
| Mistaking him for a member of a rival set, the gang chased the boy, Lesandro Guzman-Feliz, for blocks in the Belmont section of the Bronx, prosecutors said. The desperate teenager tried to hide inside of a bodega, but the gang members dragged him from the store and stabbed him to death as security cameras recorded the gruesome scene. | Mistaking him for a member of a rival set, the gang chased the boy, Lesandro Guzman-Feliz, for blocks in the Belmont section of the Bronx, prosecutors said. The desperate teenager tried to hide inside of a bodega, but the gang members dragged him from the store and stabbed him to death as security cameras recorded the gruesome scene. |
| Nearly a year after Lesandro was killed, a jury found five of the men guilty of murder and related charges on Friday, capping five weeks of testimony that provided a rare glimpse into the inner workings of the Trinitarios, a highly organized and brutally violent Dominican gang. | Nearly a year after Lesandro was killed, a jury found five of the men guilty of murder and related charges on Friday, capping five weeks of testimony that provided a rare glimpse into the inner workings of the Trinitarios, a highly organized and brutally violent Dominican gang. |
| The jury of 11 women and a man took only two days to decide the fates of the defendants — Jonaiki Martinez Estrella, 25, Antonio Rodriguez Hernandez Santiago, 25, Jose Muniz, 23, Manuel Rivera, 19, and Elvin Garcia, 25. | The jury of 11 women and a man took only two days to decide the fates of the defendants — Jonaiki Martinez Estrella, 25, Antonio Rodriguez Hernandez Santiago, 25, Jose Muniz, 23, Manuel Rivera, 19, and Elvin Garcia, 25. |
| The panel found all five guilty of first-degree murder, second-degree murder, second-degree conspiracy and second-degree gang assault. They face a maximum sentence of life in prison without parole on the murder conviction. Eight others are awaiting trial. | |
| After the verdict, Mr. Muniz showed no remorse and shouted, “Popote, hasta la muerte!” slang for Trinitarios “until death.” | |
| The murder of Lesandro rattled the city, prompting outrage on social media and calls for justice from elected officials and celebrities, including the rapper Cardi B and the Yankees pitcher C.C. Sabathia. New Yorkers flooded investigators with tips. Hundreds attended his funeral last summer. | |
| “Junior came to symbolize all of the young people who have lost their lives to brutal gang violence,” the Bronx district attorney, Darcel D. Clark, said. “Today’s verdict fortifies the Bronx community’s stand against violence.” | |
| Lesandro’s mother, Leandra Feliz said, “I’m not going to have my son back, but those killers, those murderers, they’re not going to be outside killing another kid.” | |
| The murder of Lesandro, who went by the nickname Junior, was well documented on videotape from security cameras and the cellphones of witnesses, providing prosecutors with hard proof to support their case. | The murder of Lesandro, who went by the nickname Junior, was well documented on videotape from security cameras and the cellphones of witnesses, providing prosecutors with hard proof to support their case. |
| But some of the most powerful evidence came from two gang members involved in the attack who testified for the prosecution in return for lenient sentences: Kevin Alvarez, 20, and Michael Reyes, 20. Both are expected to avoid prison time under their agreements with prosecutors. | |
| Mr. Alvarez and Mr. Reyes described how their subsets of the Trinitarios terrorized rivals, including a Trinitarios splinter group called Sunset. They said their subsets, called Los Sures and Bad Boys, abided by a strict code of conduct. Members of Los Sures took orders from a leader named Diego Suero, whom they called “Santa Claus.” | |
| It was Mr. Suero who had sent them out on June 20, 2018, armed with machetes and knives, to search for members of Sunset to attack, the two cooperating witnesses said. Mr. Suero’s trial is expected to start soon. | |
| That order came during a bloody feud within the Trinitarios that had pitted Sunset, which is based in Brooklyn, against Mr. Suero’s two Bronx sets, the witnesses said. At least 10 people had been injured in June in a series of street battles. | That order came during a bloody feud within the Trinitarios that had pitted Sunset, which is based in Brooklyn, against Mr. Suero’s two Bronx sets, the witnesses said. At least 10 people had been injured in June in a series of street battles. |
| Mr. Reyes said the conflict started when two Sunset members joined the Bad Boys, angering a Sunset member who had gone to prison for a crime the two members had committed. | Mr. Reyes said the conflict started when two Sunset members joined the Bad Boys, angering a Sunset member who had gone to prison for a crime the two members had committed. |
| Members of the Bronx sets also wanted revenge because a Sunset member had shot one of the Bad Boys in the face, Mr. Alvarez said. The night before Lesandro was killed, a large fight had erupted between the gangs, he said. | Members of the Bronx sets also wanted revenge because a Sunset member had shot one of the Bad Boys in the face, Mr. Alvarez said. The night before Lesandro was killed, a large fight had erupted between the gangs, he said. |
| Mr. Suero had warned his members to carry a weapon at all times and said if they saw a rival member to “do whatever possible to hurt the Sunset member,” Mr. Alvarez said. | Mr. Suero had warned his members to carry a weapon at all times and said if they saw a rival member to “do whatever possible to hurt the Sunset member,” Mr. Alvarez said. |
| On June 20, members of both Bronx sets had spent much of the day hunting for their enemies, Mr. Alvarez said. They gathered outside of Mr. Suero’s apartment building on Boston Road, where they smoked hookah and played music. | On June 20, members of both Bronx sets had spent much of the day hunting for their enemies, Mr. Alvarez said. They gathered outside of Mr. Suero’s apartment building on Boston Road, where they smoked hookah and played music. |
| At about 10:30 p.m., the second-in-command of Los Sures, Frederick Then, 20, also known as Colita, told the men they were headed to the Little Italy section of the Bronx to search for their rivals. An order had come from Mr. Suero, he said: “Go after Sunset — you already know what you have to do.” | At about 10:30 p.m., the second-in-command of Los Sures, Frederick Then, 20, also known as Colita, told the men they were headed to the Little Italy section of the Bronx to search for their rivals. An order had come from Mr. Suero, he said: “Go after Sunset — you already know what you have to do.” |
| Mr. Reyes said he understood that to be “an order to do any kind of damage." | Mr. Reyes said he understood that to be “an order to do any kind of damage." |
| “If you have a gun, you shoot,” he testified. “If you have a knife, you stab. If you have a machete, use the machete.” | “If you have a gun, you shoot,” he testified. “If you have a knife, you stab. If you have a machete, use the machete.” |
| That night, Lesandro had left his home on Bathgate Avenue to lend a friend $5, his mother had said during an interview last year. Then he walked toward Adams Place, where he sometimes met with friends. | |
| The men, traveling in four cars, spotted Lesandro, and one of them shouted a Trinitarios greeting at him: “Sunset, Popo,” then “1090,” which was a password Los Sures used to identify Sunset members, Mr. Alvarez and Mr. Reyes said. | |
| Mr. Reyes testified that Lesandro responded by raising his hand and saying “Que lo siete,” which Mr. Reyes said signaled that the teenager was a Sunset member. | Mr. Reyes testified that Lesandro responded by raising his hand and saying “Que lo siete,” which Mr. Reyes said signaled that the teenager was a Sunset member. |
| But Mr. Alvarez testified that Lesandro clearly told the gang “he wasn’t Sunset.” Police officials also have said Lesandro did not belong to a gang. | But Mr. Alvarez testified that Lesandro clearly told the gang “he wasn’t Sunset.” Police officials also have said Lesandro did not belong to a gang. |
| Several of the gang members got out of the cars and surrounded Lesandro, asking him questions. One made a gesture as if he were going to hit Lesandro and the teenager ran, the witnesses said. | Several of the gang members got out of the cars and surrounded Lesandro, asking him questions. One made a gesture as if he were going to hit Lesandro and the teenager ran, the witnesses said. |
| Mr. Alvarez said he and other gang members tried to block Lesandro with their cars, but the teenager fled into the Cruz and Chiky Grocery, a bodega at East 183rd Street and Bathgate Avenue. | Mr. Alvarez said he and other gang members tried to block Lesandro with their cars, but the teenager fled into the Cruz and Chiky Grocery, a bodega at East 183rd Street and Bathgate Avenue. |
| Mr. Alvarez, Mr. Reyes and a third man went into the store and asked the owner and workers to let them take Lesandro. Mr. Reyes said they falsely told the store owner that Lesandro had attacked his own grandmother. | Mr. Alvarez, Mr. Reyes and a third man went into the store and asked the owner and workers to let them take Lesandro. Mr. Reyes said they falsely told the store owner that Lesandro had attacked his own grandmother. |
| Lesandro, who had hidden behind the counter, pleaded with the men, saying he was not the person they were looking for. The store owner unlocked a door leading to the area where Lesandro was hiding, Mr. Alvarez said, and told them to take the fight outside. | Lesandro, who had hidden behind the counter, pleaded with the men, saying he was not the person they were looking for. The store owner unlocked a door leading to the area where Lesandro was hiding, Mr. Alvarez said, and told them to take the fight outside. |
| The men punched and kicked Lesandro before dragging him out. After Mr. Alvarez and Mr. Fernandez pulled the boy outside, the others attacked. | The men punched and kicked Lesandro before dragging him out. After Mr. Alvarez and Mr. Fernandez pulled the boy outside, the others attacked. |
| Mr. Muniz rushed over wielding a machete while Mr. Garcia, Mr. Rivera and Mr. Rodriguez Hernandez Santiago stabbed at him with large knives, security camera video and other evidence showed. | Mr. Muniz rushed over wielding a machete while Mr. Garcia, Mr. Rivera and Mr. Rodriguez Hernandez Santiago stabbed at him with large knives, security camera video and other evidence showed. |
| Lesandro had bruising, scratches and small puncture wounds on his body, according to autopsy photos. But it was Mr. Martinez Estrella who delivered the fatal blow when he shoved a large knife into the side of Lesandro’s neck, penetrating 4.5 inches and cutting his jugular vein, a medical examiner testified. | Lesandro had bruising, scratches and small puncture wounds on his body, according to autopsy photos. But it was Mr. Martinez Estrella who delivered the fatal blow when he shoved a large knife into the side of Lesandro’s neck, penetrating 4.5 inches and cutting his jugular vein, a medical examiner testified. |
| Mr. Martinez Estrella, a probationary member, boasted to the others that Lesandro would not “eat for a very long time because I hit him in the neck,” Mr. Reyes testified. | |
| Defense lawyers for the four other defendants said in their closing arguments that the order from Mr. Suero had only been to injure a Sunset member, not to kill someone. They attempted to cast blame on Mr. Martinez Estrella for Lesandro’s death. | Defense lawyers for the four other defendants said in their closing arguments that the order from Mr. Suero had only been to injure a Sunset member, not to kill someone. They attempted to cast blame on Mr. Martinez Estrella for Lesandro’s death. |
| They also argued their clients were pretending to stab Lesandro because gang leaders were watching the assault. If they did not participate, the lawyers said, they would have been disciplined. | They also argued their clients were pretending to stab Lesandro because gang leaders were watching the assault. If they did not participate, the lawyers said, they would have been disciplined. |
| But Morgan Dolan, the lead prosecutor, countered that “weapons like knives and machetes kill” and the gang members “went in knowing that.” | But Morgan Dolan, the lead prosecutor, countered that “weapons like knives and machetes kill” and the gang members “went in knowing that.” |
| After the attack, the gang returned to Mr. Suero’s home on Boston Road, Mr. Alvarez and Mr. Reyes said. There, leaders passed around cellphone pictures of various Sunset members and asked the returning “soldiers” to identify the person they stabbed. | After the attack, the gang returned to Mr. Suero’s home on Boston Road, Mr. Alvarez and Mr. Reyes said. There, leaders passed around cellphone pictures of various Sunset members and asked the returning “soldiers” to identify the person they stabbed. |
| Mr. Alvarez testified that Lesandro was not in the photos. | Mr. Alvarez testified that Lesandro was not in the photos. |
| “I didn’t see the person who had just finished getting stabbed there,” Mr. Alvarez said, choking back tears. “I didn’t see the kid.” | “I didn’t see the person who had just finished getting stabbed there,” Mr. Alvarez said, choking back tears. “I didn’t see the kid.” |