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Yonahan “Turbo” Sanchez pleaded guilty in Nassau County Court to two counts of second-degree murder for his role in two homicides in Far Rockaway and Lawrence in 2018.
On Dec. 15, 2018, 23-year-old Ian Cruz, a perceived enemy of MS-13 - a gang on Long Island - was lured to Bayswater Point State Park in Far Rockaway with the promise of drugs and sex, Nassau County District Attorney Madeline Singas said. He allegedly met with a 13-year-old girl, walked to the park, where Sanchez, Carlos Guerra, and a teenage boy hid with guns and knives.
Singas said that Sanchez allegedly emerged from the bushes and shot Cruz four times in the head with a .22 caliber revolver. They then took his belongings and fled to a Nameoke Street apartment where Sanchez and Guerra lived.
Before the murder, the six allegedly planned Cruz’s murder and photographs of him allegedly disrespecting MS-13 were circulated amongst them. Cruz’s body was found in just his underwear on a blanket the next day by someone at the park.
Two days after Cruz’s murder, on Dec. 17, 17-year-old Far Rockaway resident Harold Sermeno was lured to the Five Towns Community Center in Lawrence. He and the 13-year-old drank and smoked at a picnic table, at which point the five others emerged from “strategic areas of the park,” and shot him several times in the head and chest.
Singas said that Gutierrez sliced his victim’s neck with a machete. The six then fled to the same apartment. Sermeno’s body was found the following morning by someone walking a dog in the area. Police officers recovered the machete that was allegedly used in the murder of Sermeno and a .22 caliber revolver that was allegedly used in both murders at the Nameoke Street apartment.
Queens County District Attorney’s Office Chief ADA John M. Ryan said, “gangs do not respect human life. They don’t respect each other, and they certainly do not respect geographical boundaries and borderlines. We have two horrific incidents where young men were allegedly lured to their deaths by younger individuals and then pounced upon by reputed MS-13 gang members.
"The victims were viciously killed within days of each other and just miles apart. One homicide occurred in Queens County and the other in Nassau County. To seek justice for the 17-year-old and 23-year-old victims, we felt the two cases would be more effectively prosecuted in one county. The Queens homicide occurred just 500 yards from the border we share with Nassau County. Therefore, allowing our colleagues at the Nassau District Attorney’s Office to prosecute both cases, we believe will be the best way to achieve justice for the families of both victims.”
Nassau County District Attorney Madeline Singas said that she case against co-defendants, Carlos Guerra, 19 and Elmer Gutierrez, 19, of Valley Stream, are pending. The cases against two juveniles, a 15-year old boy and a 13-year old girl are also pending.
They were charged with Murder in the Second Degree for the Lawrence incident. One 15-year-old boy pleaded guilty to one count of murder and is expected to be sentenced to 8-1/2 to life in prison.
“This MS-13 member executed two young men at close range because they were perceived enemies of the gang,” Singas said. “Aggressive enforcement and strong law enforcement collaboration has decimated this gang, and we continue this work until MS-13 is eliminated.”
When he is sentenced on Tuesday, April 21, Sanchez is expected to be sentenced to a term of 34 years to life in prison.
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