LYNN — A member of the MS-13 gang has been arrested in connection with the brutal killing of a teenager last summer whose body was found in the Highlands, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Djavier Duggins, 29, also known as “Haze,” will appear before federal Judge Jennifer Boal on Thursday and charged with the homicide of Herson Rivas. The 17-year-old was stabbed multiple times on July 30 with what investigators called “extreme atrocity and cruelty.”
Duggins also faces one count of racketeering conspiracy. He is the latest to be charged. The U.S. Attorney’s Office has five members of MS-13 in custody, along with a juvenile, for the murder and conspiracy charge.
The other defendants include Erick Lopez Flores or “Mayimbu,” Henri Salvador Gutiérrez or “Perverso,” Eliseo Vaquerano Canas, or “Peligroso,” Jonathan Tercero Yanes or “Desalmado,” and Marlos Reyes or “Silencio.”
Rivas, whom police identify as a member of MS-13, was allegedly killed by the group because they suspected he was cooperating with police.
The defendants allegedly picked up Rivas in a car driven by Flores and drove him to the Henry Avenue Playground where the victim was stabbed dozens of times, the complaint said. An autopsy by the Chief Medical Examiner determined Rivas’ death was caused by sharp and blunt force injuries to the head, neck, and torso.
A cooperating witness told police Rivas begged for his life by shouting “Peli, Peli, Peli,” for his friend Peligroso, to save him. But Peligroso laughed and kept stabbing as the others stabbed him simultaneously, the witness testified.
Investigators allege beginning in 2006 the defendants were involved in a pattern of murder, witness tampering, and retaliation against informants.
La Mara Salvatrucha, better known as MS-13, is described as a criminal organization primarily comprised of immigrants from Central America, with members operating in Lynn, Boston, Everett, Chelsea, and Somerville, according to court documents.
The gang, one of the nation’s largest criminal organizations, is a network with more than 40,000 members internationally and 10,000 in the U.S., the U.S. Attorney’s Office said. The leaders are based in El Salvador with local leaders in the U.S., the indictment said.
MS-13 often recruits teenagers from middle and high schools in the Bay State, which has a large number of immigrants from El Salvador and other Central and Latin American countries.
In addition to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the investigation was conducted by the Essex County District Attorney’s Office, Lynn Police Department, the Massachusetts State Police Gang Unit, and detectives from the Massachusetts State Police assigned to the DA’s Office.
“These indictments represent an extraordinary collaboration among local, state and federal law enforcement officers who worked tirelessly to identify and apprehend those responsible for the brutal murder of a 17-year-old in a city park where children play,” said Essex District Attorney Jonathan Blodgett in a statement. “This combined effort should serve as notice to those who engage in gang activity and indiscriminate violence, that we will not rest in our pursuit of justice on behalf of victims and our duty to protect the community from this scourge.”
