View source for 18th Street gang

{{short description|Transnational criminal gang}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2020}}
{{Multiple issues|
{{weasel|date=April 2012}}
{{Original research|date=November 2009}}
}}

{{Infobox criminal organization
| name = 18th Street Gang
| image = 18th Street gang graffiti.jpg
| image_size = <!-- defaults to 220px -->
| image_alt = 
| caption = 18th Street graffiti
| founded = 1960s<ref name="Ribando">{{cite web|url=https://fpc.state.gov/documents/organization/47140.pdf|last=Ribando|first=C. |publisher=U.S. Department of States, Foreign Affairs, Defense, and Trade Division|year=2005|title=Gangs in Central America}} {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060301201233/https://fpc.state.gov/documents/organization/47140.pdf |date=March 1, 2006 }}</ref>
| founder = <!-- or |founders= -->
| named_after = 
| founding_location = [[Los Angeles]], California, United States<ref name="Criminal Street Gangs">[https://www.justice.gov/criminal-ocgs/gallery/criminal-street-gangs Criminal Street Gangs] [[justice.gov]] (May 12, 2015) {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150610061529/https://www.justice.gov/criminal-ocgs/gallery/criminal-street-gangs |date=June 10, 2015 }}</ref>
| years_active = 1960s–present
| territory = United States, Mexico, [[Central America]], Canada<ref name="Barrio 18">{{Cite web|url=https://www.insightcrime.org/el-salvador-organized-crime-news/barrio-18-profile/|title=Barrio 18|website=www.insightcrime.org|date=27 March 2017|language=en-gb|access-date=2017-06-21}} {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171125011149/https://insightcrime.org/el-salvador-organized-crime-news/barrio-18-profile/ |date=November 25, 2017 }}</ref>
| ethnicity = [[Mexicans]], [[Salvadorans]], [[Hondurans]], [[Guatemalans]], [[Nicaraguans]], [[Indigenous peoples of the Americas|Native American]], [[Costa Ricans]]
| membership_est = 30,000–50,000 members <ref name="Criminal Street Gangs"/>
| leaders = 
| activities = Drug trafficking, prostitution, [[extortion]], kidnapping, robbery, assault, murder<ref name="Criminal Street Gangs"/>
| allies = * [[Mexican Mafia]]<ref>[https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1996-11-17-mn-1539-story.html An Inside Look at 18th St.'s Menace] Rich Connell and Robert J. Lopez, ''[[Los Angeles Times]]'' (November 17, 1996)</ref>
* Other [[Sureños]] gangs<ref name="urlBarrio 18">{{cite web |url=https://www.insightcrime.org/el-salvador-organized-crime-news/barrio-18-profile-2/ |title=Barrio 18 |date=13 February 2018 }}</ref>
| rivals = {{plainlist|<!-- sourced rivals only -->
* [[Avenues (gang)|Avenues]]<ref>[https://www.kcet.org/shows/departures/the-avenues-highland-park-gang The Avenues: Highland Park Gang] [[KCET]] (November 14, 2011)</ref>
* [[Mara Salvatrucha]]<ref>[https://www.nbcnews.com/news/latino/rival-deadly-gangs-share-same-prison-cell-look-el-salvador-n1211476 Rival deadly gangs share the same prison cell: A look at El Salvador's controversial move] Roberto Valencia and Noticias Telemundo, [[NBC News]] (May 22, 2020)</ref>
* [[Playboys (gang)|Playboys]]<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20210113142204/https://casetext.com/case/people-v-delgado-334#:~:text=He%20explained%20that%20the%20Playboys,Salvatrucha%20and%2018th%20Street%20gangs. ''People v. Delgado''] casetext.com (August 31, 2016)</ref>
* [[Santa Monica 13]]<ref>[https://www.courtlistener.com/opinion/2670428/people-v-vasquez-ca24/ ''People v. Vasquez''] [[Court Listener]] (April 17, 2014)</ref>
* [[Temple Street (gang)|Temple Street]]<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20210114085930/https://casetext.com/case/people-v-gaytan-5 ''People v. Gaytan''] casetext.com (October 14, 2011)</ref>
* [[Vineland Boys]]<ref>[https://www.policemag.com/373003/the-vineland-boys-gang The Vineland Boys Gang] Richard Valdemar, policemag.com (August 21, 2007)</ref>
* [[Florencia 13]]<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2007-oct-18-me-firestone18-story.html|title=Gang rivalry grows into race war|first=Sam|last=Quinones|work=[[Los Angeles Times]]|date=October 18, 2007}}</ref>
* [[Bloods]]<ref>{{cite web|author=Derek J. Moore|url=http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20080315/news/803150313#page=0&#124;|title=Ruthless Asian gangs blaze trail of violence Killing in Jenner casts spotlight on ultraviolent syndicates with roots in Long Beach|work=Press Democrat|date=March 15, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140407074831/http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20080315/news/803150313#page=0&#124|archive-date=April 7, 2014|url-status=live|df=mdy-all}}</ref> 
* [[Black P. Stones (Jungles)]]<ref name="T. Rodgers">[https://thesource.com/2021/08/20/actor-community-activist-og-t-rodgers-passes-away-at-65/ Actor, community activist OG T. Rodgers passes away at 65] Shah Be Allah, ''[[The Source (magazine)|The Source]]'' (August 20, 2021) {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210820204953/https://thesource.com/2021/08/20/actor-community-activist-og-t-rodgers-passes-away-at-65/ |date=August 20, 2021 }}</ref>
}}
| notable_members = 
}}

The '''18th Street Gang''', also known as '''{{lang|es|Eighteen St}}''', '''{{lang|es|Barrio 18}}''', '''{{lang|es|Mara 18}}''', or simply '''{{lang|es|18}}''' in [[North America]],<ref name="Ribando" /><ref name="Lynch 2008">{{cite thesis|last=Lynch|first=Tristam W. |year=2008|title=The evolution of modern Central American street gangs and the political violence they present: Case studies of Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras |type=MA thesis |publisher=University of South Florida |url=http://scholarcommons.usf.edu/etd/370 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150706025533/http://scholarcommons.usf.edu/etd/370/ |archive-date=6 July 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|publisher=U.S. Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement|year=2011|title=HSI dismantles '18th street' gang's fraudulent document ring|url=http://www.ice.gov/news/releases/1109/110909newyork.htm|access-date=13 January 2012|archive-date=7 October 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111007061601/http://www.ice.gov/news/releases/1109/110909newyork.htm|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last1=Berlin|first1=D.|last2=Brizius|first2=E.|last3=Bump|first3=M.|last4=Garshelis|first4=D.|last5=Khonsari|first5=N.|last6=Pinheiro|first6=E.|last7=Rhudy|first7=K.|last8=Smith|first8=J. |year=2007|title=Between the border and the street: A comparative look at gang reduction policies and migration in the United States and Guatemala. Informally published manuscript, Georgetown University Law Center, Human Rights Institute, Georgetown University, Washington D.C., USA. |url=http://scholarship.law.georgetown.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1003&context=hri_papers}}</ref> is a multi-ethnic (largely [[Central America]]n and [[Culture of Mexico|Mexican]]) [[street gang]] in [[Los Angeles]].<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Rosen |first1=Jonathan |title=Drugs, Gangs, and Violence |last2=Kassab |first2=Hanna |date=8 August 2018 |publisher=Springer International Publishing |pages=91–116}}</ref> It is one of the largest street gangs in Los Angeles, with around 30,000–50,000 members between the United States, Mexico, and Central America.<ref>Franco, Celinda. "The MS 13 and 18th street gangs: Emerging transnational gang threats?." Congressional Research Service, Library of Congress, 2007.</ref> A [[United States Department of Justice]] report featured the following statement regarding 18th Street and rival gang [[MS-13]]: "These two gangs have turned the [[Central American northern triangle]] into the area with the highest [[homicide]] rate in the world".<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.foxnews.com/world/ms-13-isnt-the-only-homicidal-street-gang-in-town-meet-barrio-18/|title=MS-13 isn't the only homicidal street gang in town - meet Barrio 18|last=O'Reilly|first=Andrew|date=2017-08-04|work=Fox News|access-date=2018-01-29|language=en-US}}</ref>

== History ==
The 18th Street Gang was formed in the [[Rampart, Los Angeles, California|Rampart District]] of [[Los Angeles]] in the 1960s by [[Mexican-Americans]] and other immigrant youths who were not accepted into existing [[Hispanic and Latino Americans|Hispanic]] gangs, specifically the Clanton 14 gang.<ref name="Ribando"/><ref name=":0">{{Cite journal |last=Valdez |first=Al |date=September 1999 |title=Gang on the move: Be 18th street wise |journal=Trade Journal |volume=23 |issue=9 |pages=48–51 }}</ref> The Clanton 14 gang was composed of mostly second generation [[Hispanics]], and only accepted members of [[Mexicans|Mexican]] descent.<ref name=":0" /> Some members of Clanton 14 wanted to start a new clique called "Clanton 18th Street" and allow members of other ethnicities to join; however, this proposal was rejected by the Clanton 14, which led to the formation of the 18th Street Gang.<ref name="Barrio 18"/><ref name="Zilberg">Zilberg, E. (2011). ''Space of Detention: The Making of a Transnational Gang Crisis between [[Los Angeles]] and San Salvador''. Durham, NC: Duke University Press.</ref><ref name=":0" /> The two gangs have been bitter rivals ever since.<ref name="Zilberg"/>

18th Street grew by expanding its membership to other nationalities and races, and it was among the first multiracial, multi-ethnic gangs in Los Angeles.<ref name="Ribando" /> In the beginning, they were made up largely of second-generation Hispanics.<ref name="Ribando" /> As the 18th Street Gang began to battle with more established Hispanic gangs, they began to recruit outside the Hispanic community. There are approximately two hundred separate, autonomous gangs operating under the same name within separate barrios in the [[San Fernando Valley]]; specifically, in [[North Hollywood]], the [[San Gabriel Valley]], [[South Bay, Los Angeles|South Bay]], [[Riverside, California|Riverside]], [[East Los Angeles, California|East Los Angeles]], [[South Los Angeles]], [[Hollywood, Los Angeles|Hollywood]], [[Downtown Los Angeles]], [[Northeast Los Angeles]], [[Pico-Union, Los Angeles, California|Pico Union]], [[Westlake, Los Angeles|Westlake]], [[Koreatown, Los Angeles|Koreatown]], [[Inglewood, California|Inglewood]], [[South Gate, California|South Gate]], [[Huntington Park, California|Huntington Park]], [[Maywood, California|Maywood]], [[Bellflower, California|Bellflower]], [[Long Beach, California|Long Beach]], [[Orange County, California|Orange County]], [[San Bernardino County]], and Los Angeles' [[Westside, Los Angeles|Westside or West LA]], according to the latest figures from the [[National Drug Intelligence Center|NDIC]].{{citation needed|date=June 2014}} In the early 2000s, the Federal Bureau of Investigation initiated wide-scale raids against known and suspected gang members, netting hundreds of arrests across the country. 

=== Central America===
18th Street started as a [[Mexican American]] gang, but the gang also became [[Central America]]n as it started to recruit more members of other ethnic groups.<ref>[http://www.insightcrime.org/news-analysis/maras-in-guatemala-increasing-in-sophistication Maras in Guatemala Increasing in Sophistication] - published by Jeremy McDermott on 3 January 2013</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ghrc-usa.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/GangFactSheet.pdf |title=Gangs in Guatemala |publisher=By ghrc-usa.org |access-date=29 December 2014 |author=Julie Suarez |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924022059/http://www.ghrc-usa.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/GangFactSheet.pdf |archive-date=24 September 2015 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/09/world/americas/09iht-guatemala.4.11831371.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0 |title= Guatemalan gang culture conquers the abused with abuse |newspaper= The New York Times |date= 9 April 2008 |access-date= 29 December 2014|last1= Lacey |first1= Marc }}</ref> When Central American gang members were arrested in the United States, they were then deported back to Central America, where the gang arose not just in [[El Salvador]], but also in [[Honduras]] and [[Guatemala]], becoming one of the most violent gangs in the region.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.insightcrime.org/el-salvador-organized-crime-news/barrio-18 |title=El Salvador organized crime |publisher=insightcrime.org |access-date=29 December 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141224051804/http://www.insightcrime.org/el-salvador-organized-crime-news/barrio-18 |archive-date=24 December 2014 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-22694989 |title= Honduran gangs Salvatrucha and 18 Street announce truce |work= BBC News |date= 28 May 2013 |publisher= insightcrime.org |access-date= 29 December 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.worldbulletin.net/haber/135377/honduras-street-gangs-torture-children-to-death |title=Honduran Street gangs |publisher=worldbulletin.net |access-date=29 December 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150318130524/http://www.worldbulletin.net/haber/135377/honduras-street-gangs-torture-children-to-death |archive-date=18 March 2015 |url-status=usurped }}</ref><ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20141115025314/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sponsored/lifestyle/honduras-gangs/11228933/mara-salvatrucha-18th-street-gang.html Honduras gangs "You can recognise the gangs from their murders"] published By Rob Crilly on 14 November 2014</ref> 18th Street later became a bitter rival of [[MS-13]] as both gangs sought supremacy in Central America. Members of 18th Street are mainly Mexican, Salvadoran, Honduran, and Guatemalan, but the gang does have members from other parts of Central America. 18th Street influences have recently been spotted in [[Belize]] as well.<ref>[http://edition.channel5belize.com/archives/83717 Honduran 18 Street gang member arrested in Belize] publish by edition.channel5belize.com</ref><ref name="Lynch 2008"/><ref>{{cite web|url=http://latinousa.org/2014/09/12/gangs/ |title=Central American Gangs, Made in L.A. |date=12 September 2014 |publisher=Marlon Bishop |access-date=29 December 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141228131149/http://latinousa.org/2014/09/12/gangs/ |archive-date=28 December 2014 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://fpc.state.gov/documents/organization/47140.pdf |title= Gangs in Central America |publisher= Clare Ribando |access-date= 29 December 2014}}</ref>

In El Salvador, a faction called the "''Revolucionarios'' ("Revolutionaries") split off 18th Street in 2005,<ref name="Barrio 18"/><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/the-18th-street-gang-just-set-out-to-prove-it-runs-el-salvadors-transport-system/|first=Lauren |last=Markham|title=The 18th Street Gang Just Set Out to Prove It Runs El Salvador's Transport System|website=VICE News|date=5 August 2015 }}</ref> becoming rivals with the other members, who came to be known as the ''Sureños'' ("Southerners.")<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.salanegra.elfaro.net/es/201110/cronicas/5917/La-Revoluci%C3%B3n-en-Mariona.htm?st-full_text=1|title=La Revolución en Mariona |language=es |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170811103509/http://www.salanegra.elfaro.net/es/201110/cronicas/5917/La-Revoluci%C3%B3n-en-Mariona.htm?st-full_text=1 |archive-date=2017-08-11 |trans-title=The Revolution in Mariona |author=José Luis Sanz y Carlos Martínez |date=2011-10-25}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2016/04/03/two-salvadoran-gangsters-walk-into-a-church/|title=Two Salvadoran gangsters walk into a church|first=Joshua|last=Partlow|date=3 April 2016|via=www.washingtonpost.com}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.economist.com/news/americas/21672337-crackdown-gangs-has-so-far-made-things-worse-rivers-blood|title=Rivers of blood|newspaper=The Economist}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|date=20 April 2015|url=http://www.elsalvador.com/noticias/nacional/149940/ms-13-y-mara-18-planean-unirse-para-enfrentar-al-estado/|title=MS-13 y mara 18 planean unirse para enfrentar al Estado|website=elsalvador.com|language=es}}</ref>

== Description ==
=== Location ===
The majority of 18th Street cliques operate throughout Southern California, but are active in other states and internationally as well. Los Angeles members began migrating to other areas outside California and started to establish their own gangs. 18th Street gangs are active in 44 cities in 20 U.S. states,<ref name="Criminal Street Gangs"/> as well internationally reported in Australia, Canada, England, France, Germany, Lebanon, Peru, Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Venezuela and the Philippines.<ref>{{cite book |last= Bruneau|first= Thomas|date= 1 December 2011 |title= Maras: Gang Violence and Security in Central America (Google eBook)|page= 37|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9P7W7pBQaVkC&q=18th+Street+gang+cliques+England&pg=PA37 |publisher= University of Texas Press |isbn= 978-0-292-72928-5 |access-date= 3 March 2014}}</ref>

=== Organization ===
The organization of the 18th Street Gang differs from location to location. With the gang being spread so vastly nationally and internationally, it is difficult to have a universal organizational structure. The gang is organized in such a way that allows for leadership at every level. One common organizational structure seen used by Barrio 18 is as follows. At the very top are “palabreros” or "leaders," a majority of these members are in prison, but still help run the gang by coordinating all criminal activities. "Palabreros" also exist outside of the prison and are known as "en la libre." Lastly, there are civilians who are known as collaborators. They are not officially gang members, but they are responsible for helping the gang with small jobs, like obtaining intelligence, and moving or holding illicit goods. 

In Central America the 18th Street Gang designates positions in their organizational structure in another way; at the top are the leaders, known as the "toros," meaning bull. Underneath each “toro” is a clica, which is led by a "homie." Under each "homie" are the "soldados," meaning soldiers.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Eighteenth Street: The Origins of 'Barrio 18' {{!}} Small Wars Journal |url=https://smallwarsjournal.com/jrnl/art/eighteenth-street-origins-barrio-18 |access-date=2022-04-01 |website=smallwarsjournal.com |date=31 August 2020 |language=en}}</ref> Outside of the prisons, Barrio 18 is organized into divisions based on territory called "canchas" (courts) at city/neighborhood level and "tribus" (tribes) at regional level. The gang is horizontal in structure, allowing for a more decentralized approach to things. Although, overall 18th Street Gang is not very organized compared to some other modern day gangs. Women were also able to join the gang, but were treated very poorly. The women that joined the gang had three ways to do so, first was an 18-second beating, second was sexual intercourse with multiple members, and the last option was being the girlfriend or wife of a member can potentially lead to membership over time. The women were expected to take on male-associated roles often involving violence, as well as playing more of a mother role by caring for children and taking care of the sick.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2017-03-27 |title=Barrio 18 |url=https://insightcrime.org/el-salvador-organized-crime-news/barrio-18-profile/ |access-date=2022-04-01 |website=InSight Crime |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Cawley |first=Marguerite |date=2013-09-06 |title=The Mara Women: Gender Roles in CentAm Street Gangs |url=https://insightcrime.org/news/analysis/centam-street-gangs-reject-rely-on-women-study/ |access-date=2022-04-01 |website=InSight Crime |language=en-US}}</ref>

=== Culture ===
18th Street Gang members are required to abide by a strict set of rules.  Failure to obey the word of a gang leader, or to show proper respect to a fellow gang member, may result in an 18-second beating, or even execution for more serious offenses.<ref>{{cite news|last=Pollack |first=Ricardo |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4201183.stm |title=Americas &#124; Gang life tempts Salvador teens |work=BBC News|date=24 January 2005 |access-date=9 August 2010| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20100812073125/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4201183.stm| archive-date= 12 August 2010 | url-status= live}}</ref> According to the FBI, some factions of the 18th Street Gang have developed a high level of sophistication and organization. 18th Street Gang members often identify themselves with the number 18 on their clothing and sporting clothing from sports teams such as the [[Los Angeles Clippers]], [[Los Angeles Rams]], [[Los Angeles Chargers]], [[Los Angeles Dodgers]], [[Los Angeles Lakers]], [[Los Angeles Kings]], and [[Las Vegas Raiders]].  18th Street will use the symbols XV3, XVIII, X8, 666, 99, and 3-dots (Mi Vida Loca [My Crazy Life]) in their graffiti and tattoos. 18th Street colors are blue and black; blue is to represent and to pay tribute to The Mexican Mafia, and black is to represent the original color for the gang. The 18th Street Gang is occasionally referred to as the "Children's Army" because of its recruitment of elementary and middle-school aged youth. They also allow other ethnicities to join their ranks making the gang multi-ethnic. In El Salvador it is common for members of the gang to be tattooed on the face with a large "18". In many cases the tattoo covers the entire face.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/gallery/2012/may/09/el-salvador-gangs-in-pictures |title=El Salvador gangs celebrate a day without murders - in pictures |work=The Guardian|access-date=22 August 2016 |first=Joanna |last=Ruck}}</ref>

[[Pete Wingfield]]'s 1975 single "Eighteen With a Bullet" is the official theme song of 18th Street.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2008-08-05 |title=18 with a Bullet ~ Video Update {{!}} Wide Angle |url=https://www.pbs.org/wnet/wideangle/interactives-extras/audio-and-video/18-with-a-bullet-video-update/2702/ |access-date=2023-10-20 |website=Wide Angle}}</ref>

== Criminal activity ==
[[File:DHS Secretary Kristi Noem Travels to El Salvador (54413621033).jpg|thumb|Alleged members of the 18th Street gang incarcerated at [[Terrorism Confinement Center|CECOT]]]]

The most lucrative activity of the 18th Street gang is street-level distribution of [[cocaine]] and [[marijuana]], and to a lesser extent, [[heroin]] and [[methamphetamine]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Appendix B. National-Level Street, Prison, and Outlaw Motorcycle Gang Profiles - Attorney General's Report to Congress on the Growth of Violent Street Gangs in Suburban Areas (UNCLASSIFIED) |url=https://www.justice.gov/archive/ndic/pubs27/27612/appendb.htm |access-date=2025-05-15 |website=www.justice.gov}}</ref> The gang is also involved in auto theft, carjacking, drive-by shootings, extortion, identification fraud, robbery, assault and homicide.<ref name="Criminal Street Gangs"/>

Special Agent George Rodriguez of the U.S. [[Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives]] (ATF) described the 18th Street gang as "one of the most violent street gangs and one of the most prolific in the United States". 18th Street is a well established gang that is involved in all areas of street-crime. Several 18th Street Gang members have reached a higher level of sophistication and organization in their illicit activities than other gangs. While their main source of income is street-level distribution of drugs, they also have been linked to murders, assaults, arson, copyright infringement, extortion, human trafficking, illegal immigration, kidnapping, prostitution, robbery, and weapons trafficking, as well as other crimes.<ref>[https://www.justice.gov/ndic/pubs32/32146/appb.htm#start National Gang Intelligence Center – National Gang threat assessment 2009] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111214194554/http://www.justice.gov/ndic/pubs32/32146/appb.htm |date=14 December 2011 }}</ref> The 18th Street Gang has also been implicated in the high-profile kidnapping and murder of the 16-year-old brother of internationally renowned Honduran football player [[Wilson Palacios]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://bleacherreport.com/articles/171815-tottenhams-wilson-palacios-brother-murdered-by-kidnappers-in-honduras |title=Tottenham's Wilson Palacios' Brother Murdered By Kidnappers in Honduras |publisher=Bleacher Report |date=10 May 2009 |access-date=9 August 2010 |author=Willie Gannon |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141221091123/http://bleacherreport.com/articles/171815-tottenhams-wilson-palacios-brother-murdered-by-kidnappers-in-honduras |archive-date=21 December 2014 |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 1998, Catarino Gonzalez was sentenced to life in prison after a jury convicted Gonzalez of first-degree murder for fatally shooting Officer Filbert Cuesta in the back of the head, while the officer was sitting in a patrol car.<ref>[https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2001-sep-15-me-45999-story.html Life Term Given in Slaying of Officer] published by TIMES STAFF WRITER</ref><ref>[http://scocal.stanford.edu/opinion/people-v-gonzalez-33469 People v. Gonzalez] published by scocal.stanford.edu</ref>

[[Kingston, New York]] police arrested and jailed several young men on the charge that they abducted a victim, took him to nearby woods, and murdered him. They were held on federal murder and racketeering charges.<ref>Jesse J. Smith, "DA: Gang behind brutal slaying is still in Kingston," Hudson Valley 1, 6 April 2018 https://hudsonvalleyone.com/2018/04/06/da-gang-behind-brutal-slaying-is-still-in-kingston/</ref>

In 2019, an 18th Street gangster was fatally shot by a member of rival gang [[MS-13]] in a Queens subway station.<ref name="NormanBoroughs">{{cite news |last1=Norman |first1=Greg |title=Murders, metal pipes and baseball bats: How MS-13 is infiltrating one of NYC's most populous boroughs |url=https://www.foxnews.com/us/murders-metal-pipe-attacks-and-baseball-bats-how-ms-13-is-infiltrating-one-of-nycs-most-populous-boroughs |access-date=6 February 2019 |publisher=Fox News |date=6 March 2019}}</ref>

In [[Guatemala City]], many bus drivers who drove through the alleged territory of the gang have been killed by 18th Street Gang members. Bus drivers have also often been victims of robberies and extortion.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Wells |first=Miriam |date=2017-03-27 |title=Murders of Guatemala Bus Drivers Double in 2013 |url=http://insightcrime.org/news/brief/driving-guatemala-buses-gets-even-more-deadly/ |access-date=2025-05-31 |website=InSight Crime |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2014-11-06 |title=Guatemalan security forces capture gang members carrying improvised bombs |url=https://dialogo-americas.com/articles/guatemalan-security-forces-capture-gang-members-carrying-improvised-bombs/ |access-date=2025-05-31 |website=Diálogo Américas |language=en-US}}</ref>

== In film ==
* ''{{Interlanguage link|La Vida Loca (film)|fr|La vida loca|lt=La Vida Loca}}'', a 2008 documentary film by [[Christian Poveda]].

== See also ==
* [[Criminal tattoo]]
* [[Mejicanos massacre]]
* [[Transnational gangs]]

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== Further reading ==
*{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/5177616.stm |work=BBC News |title=El Salvador swoops on street gang |date=13 July 2006 }}
*{{cite journal |first=Ana |last=Arana |s2cid=157770788 |title=How the Street Gangs Took Central America |journal=[[Foreign Affairs]] |volume=84 |issue=3 |year=2005 |pages=98–110 |doi=10.2307/20034353 |jstor=20034353 }}

== External links ==
{{commons category}}
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20120312221153/http://www.loudountimes.com/index.php/news/article/ms-13_members_trail_shows_gangs_movement/ MS-13 Member's Trail Shows Gang's Movement] 18th Street Gang/MS-13 Rivalry
*{{cite news | first=Chris | last=Strohm | url=http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0805/080105c1.htm | title=DHS touts success of anti-gang operation | work=GovExec.com | date=1 August 2005 | access-date=14 March 2006 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060303205030/http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0805/080105c1.htm | archive-date=3 March 2006 | url-status=dead }}
*[http://la-cloaca.podomatic.com/entry/2010-01-19T14_19_38-08_00 La Cloaca Internacional: Entrevista de dos horas a integrantes del Barrio 18 (in Spanish)]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20101008001330/http://www.fbi.gov/page2/nov09/calee_111009.html FBI.gov]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20110629092318/https://www.ice.gov/news/releases/1008/100811washingtondc.htm ICE.gov]

{{Sureños}}
{{Organized crime groups in the United States}}
{{Organized crime groups in Los Angeles}}
{{Organized crime groups in New York City}}
{{Rampart Scandal}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:18th Street Gang}}
[[Category:Organizations established in the 1960s]]
[[Category:1960s establishments in California]]
[[Category:Sureños]]
[[Category:Latino street gangs]]
[[Category:Transnational organized crime]]
[[Category:Gangs in Los Angeles]]
[[Category:Gangs in New York City]]
[[Category:Gangs in El Salvador]]
[[Category:Gangs in Guatemala]]
[[Category:Gangs in Honduras]]
[[Category:Guatemalan-American culture]]
[[Category:Honduran-American culture]]
[[Category:Mexican-American culture in Los Angeles]]
[[Category:Salvadoran-American culture in California]]
[[Category:Gangs in Louisiana]]
[[Category:Gangs in North Carolina]]
[[Category:Organizations designated as terrorist by El Salvador]]