Five of the Salinas gang “Murder Squad” members sentenced; U.S. Attorney’s Office
SALINAS, Calif. (KION-TV) -- The United States Attorney's Office announced Wednesday that five members from the Salinas-based "Murder Squad" were sentenced to a combined 161 years in prison for racketeering conspiracy and conspiracy to commit murder in aid of racketeering.
According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, the "Murder Squad" was responsible for 11 murders with another 17 survivors who were shot at between 2015 and 2018.
The U.S. Attorney's Office said that several "Murder Squad" murders began when the gang members gathered at a house to remember a recently deceased friend or loved one, then decided to go "hunting" as a way to commemorate the decedent’s memory or lift their spirits. According to the U.S. Attorney, each additional body count increased a defendant’s status and prestige within the "Murder Squad."
“The ‘Murder Squad’ killed for sport, terrorizing the city of Salinas and forever altering the lives of so many innocent members of our community,” said U.S. Attorney Ramsey. “As described in the court filings, their conduct is reprehensible."
According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, the "Murder Squad" conducted more than a dozen hunts, targeting people who were Hispanic, bald or wore blue. Then, a designated shooter would accompany a designated security/spotter vehicle to seek out victims, said the U.S. Attorney's Office. Using "military-style tactics," the security/spotter vehicle would patrol the streets searching for potential targets, transmit the information and location to the shooter, then follow behind the shooter after their magazine guns were emptied on the victim, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
"This was an amazing investigation that made a tremendous impact on violence in Salinas. These guys were serial killers," Acting Police Chief John Murray told KION. "It began when our detectives recognized some similarities and connections between murders back around 2017. It branched out and grew into a federal investigation titled Operation Red Rum."
All five defendants pleaded guilty on May 7, 2024, to one count of racketeering conspiracy and one count of conspiracy to murder in aid of racketeering, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office. The Attorney's Office also said that the members were identified as Siaki Tavale ("Shocky" or "Gunner"), 27, and sentenced to 41 years in prison; John Magat ("Romeo"), 37, and sentenced to 37 years in prison; Anthony Valdez (“Hitter” or “Tony Boronda"), 27, and sentenced to 31 years in prison; Anelu Tavale ("Angel"), 28, and sentenced to 27 years in prison; and Mark Anthony Garcia (“Tony from Santa Rita"), 33, and sentenced to 25 years in prison. All of the defendants were ordered to serve a five-year terms of supervised release after completion of each defendant’s prison term, according to the Attorney's Office.
"The public has no idea how extensive [the search] was and how much impact it had," said Murray. "This is another one of these great stories begging to be told. The number of murders has since grown."
