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Gang believed involved in slayings of two men


09/21/06
MARY T. ROBBINS
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The arrest of two men in connection with the homicides of two men whose bodies were found behind Arbutus Middle School last winter has alerted Baltimore County police officials that the notorious MS-13 gang is no longer just a problem faced by other jurisdictions.

Two other men charged with first-degree murder remain at large.

The deaths of Herrim Geovanny Alverez Salmaron, 26, of Honduras, and Hever Joel Gonzales Garcia, 27, of Guatemala, are believed to be the first gang-related homicides in the county.

The men were found in a field behind the school around 8:30 a.m. Jan. 8, both with multiple stab wounds.

Salmaron and Garcia lived together in the 2600 block of Virginia Avenue in Baltimore Highlands.

Police charged William Ayala Salmaron, 20, and Jose Hernadez-Aguilar, 24, with first-degree murder Sept. 13.

Col. Jim Johnson of the Baltimore County Police Department said the two were arrested in North Carolina where they were wanted on another murder warrant.

Police have also issued warrants for Victor Alfonso Argueta, 21, of no known address, and Carlos Flores Garcia, 19, also of no known address.

Detectives said Salmaron and Hever Joel Gonzales Garcia were in Club Mate and Lounge, a bar on South Hanover Street in Baltimore City in the early morning of Jan. 8.

After they left the bar, outside video cameras captured a group of men approaching Garcia and his roommate, then all of them walking away.

Police said all four men charged in connection to the case have been identified as MS-13 gang members.

The four believed that Salmaron and Hever Garcia were part of a rival gang but police said the two slain men were not affiliated with any gang.

The two men in custody say the other two men are back in Guatemala, Johnson said.

"I'm very concerned with the influence of Hispanic gang activity on our homicide rate," said Johnson, in giving an update to members of the county's Criminal Justice Coordinating Council at a Sept. 12 meeting.

"These are admitted members of MS-13. This is a very real issue," he said of the notorious Mara Salvatrucha-13 gang.

The county's criminal justice coordinating council is in the process of drafting a strategic plan for reducing gang activity in the county.

A final version of the plan is due to state officials by Nov. 15.

Several law enforcement agencies along the East Coast, including the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement Baltimore Office and the Prince George's County Police Regional Area Gang Enforcement, assisted in the investigation and identification of the four men connected to the double homicide.

Anyone with information about Argueta and Carlos Flores Garcia is asked to call Baltimore County police at 410-307-2020 or Metro Crime Stoppers at 1-866-7-LOCKUP (1-866-756-2587).

Callers can remain anonymous, and those calling Metro Crime Stoppers might be eligible for a cash reward up to $2,000.


E-mail Mary T. Robbins at Mary T. Robbins@patuxent.com