New York, NY – A senior leader of the violent transnational gang MS-13, who was recently added to the FBI’s 10 Most Wanted Fugitives List, was arraigned today in a New York federal court on a four-count indictment. Francisco Javier Roman-Bardales, also known as “Veterano de Tribus,” is accused of directing the gang’s criminal activities across the United States, El Salvador, Mexico, and beyond for the past two decades.

Roman-Bardales, 47, originally from Ahuachapán, El Salvador, and Veracruz, Mexico, had been on the run for nearly three years before his arrest on March 18 at the San Ysidro Port of Entry in San Diego, California. He was apprehended a day earlier in Veracruz by Mexican authorities, who expelled him from the country after determining he had no valid immigration status.

Attorney General Pamela Bondi condemned MS-13’s operations, labeling the gang a “terrorist organization.” “This case reflects the Department of Justice’s ironclad commitment to putting terrorists behind bars,” she said. “Members of MS-13 and similar groups should live in fear knowing that we will hunt them down, prosecute them, and deliver swift American justice for their heinous crimes.”

U.S. Attorney John J. Durham of the Eastern District of New York echoed this sentiment, emphasizing the significance of the arrest. “The prosecution of this international fugitive, one of the most senior leaders of MS-13 in the world, is another momentous step in dismantling this evil criminal enterprise. Thanks to the relentless and brave work of U.S. law enforcement, he will soon face justice in a courtroom on Long Island, where MS-13’s violent activities have deeply impacted communities.”

Court documents indicate that Roman-Bardales was a founding member of MS-13’s Ranfla en las Calles, a leadership faction responsible for overseeing the gang’s operations. He played a key role in managing MS-13’s “Western Zone” in El Salvador. His indictment is tied to the broader prosecution of 14 MS-13 leaders in the United States v. Henriquez case, in which senior figures from the Ranfla Nacional—the gang’s highest governing body—were charged. The U.S. government has submitted formal extradition requests for 11 of those defendants who remain in custody in El Salvador.

The case underscores ongoing efforts by U.S. and international law enforcement agencies to dismantle MS-13’s leadership structure and curb its transnational criminal activities.