By Long Island Life and Politics
An alleged MS-13 gang member was sentenced to 25 years to life in prison after his conviction for the murder of an 18-year-old man in March 2021.
In the early morning hours of March 1, 2021, 18-year-old Daniel Garcia-Carbajal was lured to Cow Meadow Park in Merrick with the promise of meeting up with girls through a message sent to him on Facebook Messenger. The victim was picked up in a car that afternoon and taken to Cow Meadow Park in Freeport with the defendant, Kevin Torres, and other co-defendants.
Garcia-Carbajal entered the park with multiple co-defendants – including Torres – where he was shot once in the head, causing his death. After the murder, Kevin Torres was given the gun used in the shooting and buried it in a co-defendant’s backyard.
A family member reported Garcia-Carbajal missing and his body was found the following day in the park. The victim was a perceived enemy of MS-13 because of previous social media posts.
Torres, 26, was arrested on October 26, 2021, by members of the Nassau County Police Department’s Bureau of Special Operations in Central Islip. He was convicted June 5, of second-degree murder and first-degree conspiracy, both Class A-I felonies, and second-degree conspiracy, a Class B felony. He was sentenced on July 10, 2024.
“Daniel Garcia-Carbajal trusted that Kevin Torres was just trying to show him a good time, heading to Cow Meadow Park for an afternoon of partying with friends,” said Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly (R). “But he sadly put his trust in the wrong people, and because of Daniel’s social media posts, which were taken as disrespectful to MS-13, he was ambushed, shot, and killed by the defendant and his co-conspirators. NCDA will continue to aggressively prosecute cases involving this dangerous street gang to protect our communities from their violence.”
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