A new federal indictment filed against Ruben “Menace” Reyes, 36, lays out the killing of Officer Julian Pesina as one of the overt violent acts or pattern of criminal acts Reyes is accused of as part of the gang’s alleged racketeering.
Reyes, in a closed hearing, recently admitted he was involved in 16 killings for the gang. He did not specify who he killed, but court records say he shot three high-ranking members of his gang and passed down orders targeting Officer Pesina.
Until this week’s indictment, Pesina’s killing had not been mentioned in the charges against Reyes.
During the closed hearing in September, federal authorities said Reyes is suspected in at least 35 killings, and briefly held the rank of “lieutenant of lieutenants,” according to details made public in October.
Three other purported members of the gang: Jerry “Spook” Idrogo, 34; Alfredo “Freddy Low” Cardona, 36; and Jesse “Jay” Santibanez, 26, are charged in connection with the death of Pesina, who was shot outside his tattoo shop May 4, 2014, as he reportedly delivered payment for a street tax imposed by the gang.
Before Pesina’s death, the FBI suspected he was dealing drugs and was secretly recording him with a pole-mounted video camera.
If convicted, all four suspects face up to life in prison. The Justice Department has not issued a determination on whether local federal prosecutors should pursue the death penalty.
Law officers also believe Reyes participated in the killing of Julie Ann Rodriguez, 44. She was shot in September 2013 in her driveway a day before she was to be the key witness against the Mexican Mafia’s reputed “captain of captains,” Martin B. Balboa, 45, in a cold-case murder trial. Balboa was later charged with federal drug and gun crimes and is awaiting trial.
Sources said Reyes is most recently suspected of being involved in the Oct. 22, 2014, shooting of Ernest Ibarra, 45, and Jacob Gonzales, 43, in the 700 block of Fay Avenue. Ibarra died there. Gonzales died a few days later.
At the recent hearing, U.S. District Judge David Ezra granted federal prosecutors’ request to postpone Reyes’ case for four months as they seek guidance from the Justice Department on how to proceed. Reyes is charged with using and discharging a firearm during a violent crime in aid of racketeering activity. His case is part of a larger racketeering investigation into the gang.
Reyes went to the San Antonio Police Department for protection after he was shot Nov. 9, 2014, in an apparent hit ordered by imprisoned gang leaders, records show.
Over at least two days, he confessed to the SAPD and the FBI about several killings and helped them in finding the bodies of three victims: gang bosses Mark Anthony “Lefty” Bernal, Carlos “Worm” Chapa and Johnny “Smiley” Solis, in a makeshift grave in Pearsall.
They were killed and buried in a grave for allegedly mishandling $60,000, records said.
