The Public Eye: Samuel Logan - Inside the MS 13 America's Most Violent Gang

Like any American teenager, Brenda Paz spent much of her time with
her friends. They would go to parties, listen to music, and show off
their cars late into the night. But Brenda and her friends belonged to
the Mara Salvatrucha--the MS-13--the most violent gang in America, and
in addition to enjoying the things that all teenagers do, her friends
were thieves, drug dealers, human traffickers, and murderers.

A
street gang that began in Los Angeles in the 1980s, the Mara
Salvatrucha has spread across the United States and Central America
with startling speed, boasting tens of thousands of members. They deal
ruthlessly with competing gangs and any members who display disloyalty,
often leaving a trail of dismembered corpses in their wake. They are
poised to surpass the Mafia as the country's most organized criminal
network. And by operating within the insular Central American immigrant
communities, the Mara Salvatrucha has been able to easily elude law
enforcement.

All that changed when Brenda Paz turned
informant for the FBI, exposing the incredible scope of the gang's
operations. But Brenda's cooperation with the FBI was only the
beginning. What followed is an extraordinary story of strength,
intelligence, and incredible courage.

This is for the Mara Salvatrucha takes us into a dark and violent world that few people have seen, but is closer than you think.