Media Fails to Note 6 Murder Suspects are Illegal Immigrants, MS-13 Gangbangers

The mainstream media conveniently manipulates the flow of information to keep with its liberal agenda and this week we have yet another example; widespread coverage involving the gruesome murder of a young Maryland man omits that most of the suspects are illegal immigrants affiliated with a violent criminal gang. The 21-year-old victim’s body was found at the end of July in Towson, a community of about 55,000 located roughly 11 miles north of Baltimore City. Police said the victim, Daniel Alejandro Cuellar, was found lying near an apartment building with “trauma to the body.”

This week seven suspects were arrested and charged with first degree murder for Cuellar’s death. Baltimore County authorities published the information along with the names and mug shots of each individual. It is easy to conclude from the look of the mug shots and the accompanying names that the suspects are all Hispanic, though immigration status is not mentioned in the county bulletin. The arrested are identified as 20-year-old Jonathan Escobar-Hernandez, 20-year-old Marlon Leonardo Fabian-Flores, 18-year-old Edwin Edgardo Garcia-Martir, 31-year-old Hugo Portillo-Chavez, 19-year-old Joe Fausto Rivera-Coreas, 20-year-old Odaliz Rosas-Yanez and 16-year-old Leonel Alexander Velasquez-Hernandez. All seven are being held without bail at the Baltimore County Detention Center and face life in prison if convicted.

The recent arrests received quite a bit of news coverage, from newspaper and radio outlets to local affiliates of national television networks. They variously rehashed the crime and cited the medical examiner’s determination that Cuellar was killed with multiple sharp force objects. One national news headline reads: “Seven People, Including Juvenile, Charged With Murder After Body Found Near Towson Apartment.” Another, published by a local outlet, simply says “Seven Charged In Baltimore County Murder.” None of the coverage bothers to mention the pertinent information regarding the suspects’ immigration status and confirmed affiliation to a famously violent criminal gang that operates all over the United States. This seems to violate the tenets of journalism, which include accuracy, fairness, objectivity and impartiality.

We only know this essential information about these Baltimore suspects because a conservative news outlet bothered to do some real reporting. In a story appropriately titled “Media blackout: At least 6 illegal aliens charged with brutal murder in Baltimore suburb,” the Conservative Review reveals that, unlike other media outlets, it actually contacted Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to find out if the agency had detainers on any of the arrestees accused of murdering Cuellar. ICE confirmed that six of the seven are illegal aliens—five from El Salvador and one from Mexico—in the agency’s system and members of the Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13), long designated as a transnational criminal organization by the U.S. government. Last year ICE removed nearly 6,000 gangbangers from the country, including 1,332 MS-13 members, according to agency figures. It marked a 24% increase from the previous year.

Local governments, like those throughout Maryland, that offer illegal immigrants sanctuary make the task more difficult. The suspects in this case should have been turned over to federal authorities long ago, but like a growing number of municipalities, Baltimore County offers illegal aliens sanctuary. Back in 2017 Baltimore County Executive Kevin Kamenetz issued an order prohibiting county law enforcement officers from asking suspects about immigration status or cooperating with federal agents to deport illegal immigrants who commit local crimes. Only three Maryland counties cooperate with ICE and Democrats are trying to pass broad legislation to make the entire state an official sanctuary. Along with the District of Columbia, Maryland is one of 12 states that offer illegal immigrants driver’s licenses, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. The others are California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, Vermont and Washington.