What to Know
- An alleged MS-13 gang member has been arrested in connection with a 2017 machete murder of a man whose body was found in a wooded area
- Police say the gang believed the victim was a threat and lured him into the woods where he was hacked and stabbed to death
- A co-defendant was sentenced to 32 years to life in prison after pleading guilty to murder and other charges
An alleged MS-13 gang member has been arrested in connection with the 2017 machete murder of Carlos Rivas-Majano, whose body was found in a wooded area in East Meadow last summer.
The Nassau County district attorney's office says 21-year-old Luis Alejandro Varela pleaded not guilty Thursday to murder. He's due back in court July 22 and faces a maximum sentence of 25 years to life in prison.
Police say the gang believed the victim was a threat and lured him into the woods where he was hacked and stabbed to death.
A co-defendant was sentenced to 32 years to life in prison after pleading guilty to murder and other charges.
The MS-13 gang has been blamed for dozens of killings since January 2016 across a wide swath of Long Island.
Copyright AP - Associated Press
