Kevin Abarca-Choto was an 18-year-old from New Bedford last seen on August 24, 2018, after leaving his home and never returning. Described as Hispanic/Latino with black hair, brown eyes, a slender build, about 5 feet 6 inches and 125 pounds, he was reported missing to the New Bedford Police Department on September 1, 2018.

Court documents in a broader federal racketeering case later identified an MS-13 associate referred to as K.A.C., killed in New Bedford on August 25, 2018. Prosecutors said Elmer De Jesus Alas Candray and other MS-13 members met the associate at a New Bedford residence; reporting based on court records and witness testimony has linked K.A.C. to Kevin Abarca-Choto. According to those accounts, he was beaten and strangled with a belt, dismembered in a bathtub, placed in trash bags and buried in woods near New Bedford. Despite prosecutions related to the gang’s killings, Kevin’s remains have not been recovered, and his family still has no grave to visit.

Anyone who knew Kevin, saw him in New Bedford around late August 2018, or has information about possible burial sites in the greater New Bedford area is asked to come forward.