June 22, 2009- Albuquerque, NM-- Albuquerque's skyrocketing crime rate hits 
the news again with yesterday's gang killing of an employee of a Denny's restaurant. Apparently four gunmen came into the local eatery in broad daylight and demanded cash, terrorizing employees and guests. A female employee was killed.
I was interviewed by the TV news today and I will post the interview on this blog tomorrow. This disturbing trend is likely to rise with the worsening economy and increasing drug problems in Albuquerque. The murderers were members of the MS13 gang, which was founded in the 1980's by El Salvadorian immigrants in Los Angeles's 13th Street. Thus the name. This gang is growing rapidly within the United States, Mexico and central America.
The FBI estimates that the gang has at least 200 cells in the United States with the largest in Washington DC. Law Enforcement estimates that there are 5000-6000 MS13 gang members in DC alone. Violence follows this gang and its members are especially ruthless and usually have outnumber and out gun their advisories. MS13 has 36,000 gang members in El Salvador and it is important to consider that this is a paramilitary force and its members receive these types of training. These criminals are not rookies who are out stealing cars and spray painting on walls. They are often armed with AK47 machine guns and sometimes wear ballistic vests.
In Charlotte North Carolina, MS 13 was responsible for 11 murders in 2000 alone! The gang specializes in drug trafficking, human trafficking along the rio grand corridor and other smuggling activities. Their members often enter the gang at the early age of 12.
Read more about the Albuquerque Denny's killing/ day light robbery..
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Police on Sunday were searching for at least two more suspects they believe killed a teenage worker during a robbery at a packed Denny's and committed 10 more armed robberies in Albuquerque this past year.
Two suspects were arrested within minutes of the crime Saturday on suspicion of murder, kidnapping, robbery and child abuse because there were at least five children in the restaurant, Albuquerque Police Officer Nadine Hamby said.
Hamby said the men who were arrested are in their late 20s to early 30s and are from South America, but she did not know where specifically. She said police were working with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to verify the men's identities.
Hamby said at least four masked men with rifles and handguns rushed into the northwest Albuquerque Denny's around 9:30 a.m. Saturday and demanded money.
A teenage female employee was fatally shot during the robbery. Police have not yet identified her.
One restaurant employee told police a manager was forced to open the cash register and the robbers took an undetermined amount of cash.
Hamby said police believe the men committed 10 similar robberies in the Albuquerque area in the past year, but no one was shot in those incidents. She would not provide further details.
She said about 35 detectives, who were in the area as part of a special operation targeting robberies, responded to the restaurant and found two of the suspects quickly.
Hamby said police were trying to help the roughly 100 people who were in the restaurant at the time get any emotional or psychological help they may need. They've been through a traumatic experience," she said.
Witnesses described the scene inside the restaurant as chaotic, with people getting down on the floor when they heard a bang. "Four masked men came in with guns," customer Brian Thompson told KRQE News in Albuquerque. "Two went toward the back. That's all we could see because we all hit the ground."
What should people do? The news reporter asked me if people should be concerned, particularly since this killing was done in daylight in a nice area of town. yes people should be concerned. People need to be able to protect themselves and not rely on police protection that may be a long way off, judges that approve plea deals and early releases and politicians who are reactive to this problem. Protect yourself because you are the only one that can.
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I wish the restaurant was filled with people who had taken my ICS gun deployment class.
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