MS-13 gang member gets 27 years in prison for teen’s killing

BOSTON – A member of MS-13 has been sentenced by a federal judge to more than 27 years in prison for the 2016 murder of a 16-year-old boy in East Boston.

Rigoberto Mejia was sentenced Wednesday in U.S. District Court after he admitted taking part in the killing of Cristofer Perez de la Cruz, who was believed to be a member of the rival 18th Street gang.

Prosecutors say other MS-13 members stabbed de la Cruz multiple times while Mejia shot him.

Mejia is a 32-year-old Salvadoran national who prosecutors say was a “homeboy,” or full member, of an MS-13 clique. He pleaded guilty in April to racketeering charges.

Mejia is subject to deportation after his sentence. He’s among dozens convicted following a major raid on MS-13 in Massachusetts in 2016.