Oscar Efrain Zavala Urrea, 23, pled guilty to participating in a racketeering conspiracy that included a murder, that were related to his involvement in an MS-13 gang, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Maryland.
Urrea is an El Salvadoran national living in Silver Spring.
According to court documents, the international criminal organization known as La Mara Salvatrucha gang, or MS-13, operates in Montgomery, Prince George’s and Frederick counties as well as elsewhere throughout the United States.
As detailed in the plea agreement, from at least January 2020, Zavala Urrea was a member or associate of the MS-13 Fulton Locos Salvatruchas (“FLS”) clique and agreed with members of MS-13 to conduct and participate in the gang’s affairs through a pattern of racketeering activity that included murder, conspiracy to commit murder, extortion and drug distribution.
According to the plea agreement, over the course of several weeks in 2020, Zavala Urrea and other MS-13 members met to plan a murder of someone they believed robbed them.
On May 25, 2020, Zavala Urrea and other MS-13 gang members gathered in a park in Silver Spring. Zavala Urrea met with each gang member to discuss the murder plans, which was to happen the next morning.
As detailed in court documents, on May 26, 2020, at approximately 7:05 a.m., two FLS MS-13 gang members approached the victim as he left his apartment in Silver Spring and fired handguns at him repeatedly, hitting him eight times and killing him.
Following the murder, Zavala Urrea and a co-conspirator traveled to Annapolis where they met a third MS-13 gang member. Zavala Urrea and the co-conspirator changed their clothes and disposed of the old clothing. They gave the third gang member a backpack containing two firearms for safe keeping, according to the U.S. Attorney’s office.
Zavala Urrea raised money for the gang by participating in the sale of marijuana and the collection of extortion money from brothels and other businesses, according to the U.S. Attorney’s office.
Zavala Urrea could be sentenced to between 20 and 25 years in federal prison when he is sentenced March 19, 2024.
— US Attorney Maryland (@USAO_MD) December 1, 2023
