In the spring of 2017, 16-year-old Julio Vasquez was killed in a wooded section of Alley Pond Park in Queens. Members of the Centrales Locos Salvatruchas clique of MS-13 led by Melvi Amador-Rios targeted Vasquez after he allegedly failed to carry out an ordered hit and was suspected of cooperating with law enforcement. On May 16, 2017, fellow gang members Josue Leiva and Luis Rivas lured Vasquez into the park and stabbed him more than 30 times, nearly decapitating him.

His body was found five days later by a bird watcher, who discovered the scene because of the smell of decomposition. The murder was described as a calculated execution tied to the clique’s internal discipline and suspicions of informant activity.

Was anyone in the neighborhood or who frequented Alley Pond Park in May 2017 aware of unusual activity or interactions involving the victim or these gang members?