Police have discovered the remains of an individual killed by the MS-13 gang and buried in a wooded area about four years ago in Long Island.
The Nassau County Police acted on a tip Tuesday afternoon and were led to the shallow grave by a New York State Police search dog.
Nassau County Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder said the victim was one of 16 people who were reportedly killed by the notorious street gang, and six who were found buried throughout the New York City neighborhood.
Aerial view of the restrictive grounds of the Town of Hempstead water supply where authorities found the body of an individual was Tuesday. The victim is reportedly one of 16 who were murdered by the MS-13 gang in Long Island, according to the Nassau County Police
Nassau County Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder said investigators had visited the grounds of the water supply area in the town of Uniondale on two occasions, but never came to any conclusions until Tuesday afternoon when they acted on a tip and were led to the secret burial spot by the New York State Police dog
'We'll keep pushing until we put all of these savages behind jail and keep them there,' Ryder said. 'We believe they are all there now and we'll keep going after them until they're all arrested.'
Ryder said investigators had been to the Town of Hempstead public water supply, which is closed off to the public, on two occasions but failed to find any human remains of persons.
The burial spot in the town of Uniondale was covered with dirt, leaves and branches. The entrance gate to the water supply grounds was a couple of feet away from a passageway used by students as a shortcut to a local high school, according to WABC-TV.
Authorities made the gruesome discovery of a body that has been buried for at least three to four years the restrictive area of public water supply in Uniondale, New York. The remains belong to a person who was reported missing and allegedly killed by the MS-13 gang
Authorities made two visits to the Town of Hempstead public water supply in the past, but never found any human remains tied to killings reportedly carried out by the MS-13
The body, whose name, age and gender were not publicly released pending family notification, could be part of several people reported missing in 2016 or 2017, according to Ryder, who added that the police department has an idea who the person may be.
Newsday reported the remains were found about 300 yards inside the water supply's restricted zone.
The MS-13, or Mara Salvatrucha, was founded in Los Angeles between the 1970s and 1980s to provide protection for immigrants from El Salvador from rival gangs.
The gangs presence quickly spread to El Salvador as many members were deported, thus expanding the MS-13 influence to neighboring countries in Central America.
The notorious street gang throughout the years expanded across the United States, entrenching itself in New York, New Jersey, Texas, Mississippi and Virginia.