MINEOLA, N.Y. (WCBS 880) — An MS-13 gang member was sentenced to 24 years to life in prison on Tuesday for the murder of two teenagers in 2016 and 2017.
Kevin Lopez-Morales, 23, of Roosevelt, pleaded guilty on Sept. 9, 2019 to two counts of murder in the second degree.
According to officials Lopez-Morales was 18 years old when he helped plan and participate in the machete murder of 19-year-old Josue Amaya Leonor on Sept. 4, 2016.
Leonor’s body was found in a wooded area of the Roosevelt Preserve in May 2018, officials added.
One year later, authorities say Lopez-Morales worked with fellow gang members to then murder 15-year-old Angel Soler on July 21, 2017.
The teen’s body was discovered under cement on Oct. 19, 2017 in a “remote wooded area in Roosevelt, just south of the Southern State Parkway,” according to officials. They added that his body was “mutilated” and his injuries were consistent with the use of a machete.
Both victims were allegedly murdered because they were perceived to be enemies of MS-13.
“Kevin Lopez-Morales and his co-defendants acted as friends to two young men but lured them to their deaths over perceived slights to MS-13,” said Acting Nassau County District Attorney Joyce Smith. “MS-13 has left behind many grieving families on Long Island, but their attempts to destroy our community have not and will not be successful. We continue to spend any and all necessary resources to eliminate this vicious and unthinkable gang violence in our communities.”
Three other gang members have also been sentenced to life in prison for Soler’s murder. The cases against Lopez-Morales’ co-defendants in the Leonor murder are pending.
On Tuesday, Nassau County Executive Laura Curran vowed that MS-13 gang members and others who commit violent crimes on Long Island will be brought to justice.
“Although this verdict cannot fill the hole that both Angel and Josue’s murder has left in so many hearts, it sends a crystal-clear message to those who engage in senseless violent crime: You will be caught, held accountable, and put away for a long time,” she said in a statement.