Reputed MS-13 defendants laugh, smile as slain teen's family glares

A man flashes the MS-13 gang hand sign.  (Reuters)

Reputed members of the notorious Salvadoran gang MS-13 -- accused of brutally murdering two teenage girls -- laughed and smiled during Tuesday's court appearance, all while the family of one of the victims watched from the gallery.

During Tuesday's hearing, defendants Enrique Portillo and brothers Alexi Saenz and Jairo Saenz joked with each other as prosecutors said they were waiting to hear from the U.S. Justice Department about whether they can pursue the death penalty, the New York Post reported.

The three defendants have been charged in the deaths of Kayla Cuevas, 16, and her close friend Nisa Mickens, 15, who were slaughtered in 2016 in a residential neighborhood near an elementary school in Brentwood, a Long Island suburb of New York City.

Cuevas' family stared down their daughter's alleged killers during the proceeding, the newspaper reported.

U.S. Attorney Robert L. Capers said the Saenz brothers ordered the killing of Cuevas in retaliation after she called out the gang at school and on social media.

U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions has emphasized the Trump administration's commitment to combating MS-13, and has allowed prosecutors to pursue any legal avenue to target the gang – although he has not yet stated whether capital punishment is on the table for Portillo and the Saenzes, the Post reported.

Meanwhile, reputed MS-13 members Mario Aguilar-Lopez and Jose Suarez, who also appeared in court Tuesday, are accused of killing a rival gang member and injuring an onlooker.

Judge Joseph Bianco offered to hear the case for Aguilar-Lopez and Suarez separately, although their lawyers have yet to file the proper motions to do so. They do not face the death penalty, the paper reported.

MS-13 was started by Central American immigrants, mainly from El Salvador, in Los Angeles in the 1980s, but has since expanded to include several other Central and South American countries. The gang is believed to be responsible for 25 killings in New York City's Long Island suburbs in the past two years.  

Benjamin Brown is a reporter for Fox News. Follow him on Twitter @bdbrown473.

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