Youth gangs that have terrorized Central America for years are spreading north into Mexico and preying on illegal immigrants in a fresh challenge to the government’s war on crime, politicians said on Monday. Hunted down by new governments in Honduras and Guatemala, members of the feared “Salvatrucha” and “Mara 18” gangs have turned up in recent months in eight Mexican states from Chiapas in the south to Tijuana on the U.S. border, leaving a trail of killings and rape. The gangs, known as “maras,” prey on illegal migrants who travel from Central America up through Mexico by hopping cargo trains in the hope of reaching the United States. While crime figures are hard to come by, local legislators say gang-related violence is on the rise. Full Story
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