El Salvador judges sentence 254 MS‑13 gang members to up to 85 years in prison

A criminal court in San Salvador sentenced 254 alleged members of the Mara Salvatrucha (MS‑13) to prison terms of up to 85 years. The convictions include the cell leader Eugenio Morales, known as “Little Pesadilla,” for organized‑crime participation, illegal firearm possession and drug‑trafficking offenses.

The judgments were delivered after a single open hearing that lasted more than a month and a half, a procedure introduced by a December 2023 reform of the law against organized crime that allows mass processing of gang structures. The mass sentencing is part of President Nayib Bukele’s aggressive anti‑gang campaign, which has resulted in over 92,000 arrests, more than 6,400 human‑rights complaints and roughly 530 deaths in state custody, according to humanitarian organisations.