Feds: Alleged MS-13 gang member pleads guilty for role in quadruple CI killings

An alleged MS-13 gang associate pleaded guilty in federal court Friday for his role in the brutal machete slayings of four young men in a Central Islip park in 2017, prosecutors said.

Alexis Hernandez, 25, of Central Islip, admitted before U.S. District Judge Gary R. Brown that he was armed with a wooden club when he led the victims — Justin Llivicura, 16, of East Patchogue; Michael Lopez Banegas, 20, of Brentwood; Jorge Tigre, 18, of Bellport and Jefferson Villalobos,18, of Pompano Beach, Florida — deeper into a wooded area where they were killed by other MS-13 members on April 11, 2017, prosecutors said.

"This was one of the most gruesome murders in Suffolk County’s history," said Suffolk County Police Acting Commissioner Stuart Cameron. "I commend the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York and our law enforcement partners for ensuring Alexis Hernandez will be held accountable for his role in this brutal crime."

The killings came seven months after two teenage girls — Kayla Cuevas and Nisa Mickens — were also killed by MS-13 gang members in nearby Brentwood. Their deaths shone a national spotlight on Long Island’s MS-13 gang violence, drawing the attention of former President Donald Trump and former U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions. Both visited Long Island to highlight the government’s battle against the notorious street gang with roots in El Salvador.

"With today’s guilty plea, the defendant acknowledges his role in the brutal and senseless murders of four young men he believed had disrespected the MS-13. I hope our efforts to bring these killers to justice provides some measure of comfort to the families of the victims, although no criminal case will replace their loved ones," U.S. Attorney Breon Peace said in a statement.

Prosecutors have alleged that on the evening of April 11, 2017, two female MS-13 associates lured five young men, including the four victims, to the park where they were attacked using knives, machetes, an ax and clubs made out of tree limbs found at the park. One of the young men escaped.

The MS-13 members and associates believed the victims to be members of the rival 18th Street gang who had disrespected the MS-13, though their families have denied the young men were gang members.

After the attack, the MS-13 members dragged the victims’ bodies to a more secluded spot in the woods and then fled. The victims’ bodies were discovered the following evening.

Hernandez’ attorney, Susan Kellman, of Brooklyn, did not immediately respond to a message Friday.

Another defendant in the case, Anderson Sanchez, 22, of Central Islip, pleaded guilty Dec. 3 to racketeering charges in connection with the killings. Sanchez faces a maximum of life imprisonment at sentencing and later deportation, prosecutors said. Another defendant Leniz Escobar, whose alleged street name is "Diablita," is scheduled for trial on Jan. 10. More than a dozen MS-13 gang members and their associates, one as young as 15 years old at the time, have been charged in the killings.

Josue Portillo, who was 15 at the time, was the first defendant to plead guilty. He admitted to stabbing Banegas during his 2018 guilty plea and was sentenced to 55 years in prison.

Hernandez, who was arrested July 13, 2017 at his home in Central Islip, faces a sentence of up to life in prison and deportation. A sentencing date has not been set.

By Nicole Fuller

nicole.fuller@newsday.com@NicoleFuller

Nicole Fuller is Newsday's senior criminal justice reporter. She began working at Newsday in 2012 and previously covered local government.