Nassau County District Attorney Anne T. Donnelly announced that an alleged MS-13 member was convicted of the murder of an 18-year-old man in Cow Meadow Park in March 2021.
Kevin Torres, 26, a/k/a Sarco, was convicted Wednesday after a jury trial before Judge Tammy Robbins of Murder in the Second Degree (an A-I felony); Conspiracy in the First Degree (an A-I felony); and Conspiracy in the Second Degree (a B felony).
The trial began on May 22, 2024, and the jury deliberated for less than an hour before delivering their verdict. The defendant faces up to 25 years to life in prison when he is sentenced on July 10, 2024.
“Kevin Torres was instrumental in the murder of a teenage victim and conspiracy to conceal the crime,” said DA Donnelly. “Daniel Garcia-Carbajal thought he was going to spend an afternoon partying with friends and a few girls when he was persuaded to take a drive with Torres to Cow Meadow Park. Instead, the young man was brutally murdered for social media posts that were seen by MS-13 as disrespecting the gang. NCDA has worked diligently for years to dismantle this criminal organization and will continue to aggressively prosecute these cases to ensure MS-13 never regains its foothold in our communities.”
DA Donnelly said in the early morning hours of March 1, 2021, 18-year-old Daniel Garcia-Carbajal was lured to Cow Meadow Park with the promise of meeting up with girls through a message sent to him on Facebook Messenger.
The victim was picked up in a car that afternoon and taken to Cow Meadow Park in Freeport with Torres and other co-defendants.
Garcia-Carbajal entered the park with multiple co-defendants – including Torres – where he was shot once in his head causing his death.
After the murder, Kevin Torres was given the gun used in the shooting and buried it in a co-defendant’s backyard.
A family member reported Garcia-Carbajal missing and his body was found the following day in the park. The victim was a perceived enemy of MS-13 because of previous social media posts.
Torres was arrested on October 26, 2021, by members of the Nassau County Police Department’s Bureau of Special Operations in Central Islip.
Veronica Guariglia, Deputy Chief of the Homicide Bureau, is prosecuting the case. The defendant is represented by Jeffrey Groder, Esq.