FBI offers $5 million reward for leader of notorious MS-13 street gang ‘El Porky’

Yulan Adonay Archaga Carías, is the highest ranking member of the MS-13 gang in Honduras.

The US Government say he is responsible for trafficking cocaine into the US as well as directing gang activities such as money laundering, murder, kidnap and other violence.

"The arrest of such a prominent leader as El Porky creates suspicion, division, and instability within MS-13, particularly among the top leadership," Robert F. Clifford, a former FBI agent and director of the MS-13 National Gang Taskforce said in a statement.

"The higher the amount, a potential informant always evaluates the risk versus return of taking such a drastic step as becoming an informant. If he or she is already considering trying to depart MS-13, this will significantly impact their decision to cross that line."

"MS-13 is a highly organized criminal enterprise with senior leadership based in El Salvador and Honduras, with tentacles that reach deep into the United States," he added.

"At times MS-13 has been portrayed as just another street gang with cliques operating independently, and this is a dangerous misunderstanding."

The U.S. Treasury Department also announced sanctions against Archaga Carías and David Elias Campbell Licona, an MS-13 associate based in Nicaragua, who also goes by the name Jorge Eduardo Perez Paz.

In 2012, MS-13 became the first ever street gang to be branded a transnational criminal organization by the treasury.

In 2021 the FBI added El Porky to their list of top 10 fugitives, offering a $100,000 reward for his arrest.

The Department of Justice indicted him on racketeering, narcotics trafficking and firearms offences.

The Department of Justice estimates that MS-13 has approximately 10,000 gang members across the US.