Possible gang members arrested
By: Melissa Kinton
Source: The Monroe County Advocate
07-10-2007

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The Vonore Police Department (VPD) arrested a father and son with possible gang ties in Vonore on Saturday.

Jose Estrada Ayala Sr., 53, and Jose Estrada Ayala Jr., 28, both living at Ellis Street, Vonore, were arrested on parole violation warrants from California. Ayala Jr. was also charged locally with evading arrest.

Based on tattoos found on Ayala Jr.’s body, he might have been a member of the Mara Salvatrucha gang, also known as MS-13.

Believed to have originated in El Salvador, MS-13 is known for home invasion robberies, drug dealing, prostitution and machete attacks on its enemies. Possibly the most dangerous gang in America, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) created a task force to combat MS-13 - similar to the way it once went after the mafia.

The Ayalas also could have been involved with the Latin Kings gang. The Latin Kings is a Chicago-based street gang consisting mainly of Spanish-speaking or Hispanic members. It began as a social organization for the advancement of the Puerto Rican community in the Chicago area in the 1940s but by the 1970s, the Latin Kings were engaged in criminal activity, and in particular, drug trafficking.

It is not known if the Ayalas were in Vonore to escape their past. Gang members are typically not allowed to leave their gangs. One female MS-13 gang member in Virginia who turned informant was found stabbed to death with her head nearly severed.

The Ayala family has lived in Vonore for several years with no problems.

“They’ve been here for a while,â€