In the early morning hours of June 23, 2019, the sound of gunshots pierced the quiet of a Reston, Virginia neighborhood. Responding to the reports, Fairfax County police discovered the body of 24-year-old Jose Lorenzo Guillen Mejia in a wooded area near a walking path between Hunters Woods Plaza and Breton Court. Guillen Mejia, a resident of Reston who was originally from El Salvador, had sustained trauma to his upper body, and an autopsy would later confirm he died from multiple gunshot
wounds.
The initial investigation revealed that Guillen Mejia had been out with friends earlier in the evening. His death was quickly deemed a homicide, sparking a lengthy and complex investigation. For nearly a year, details about potential suspects remained scarce. Then, in June 2020, a significant development emerged as Fairfax County police announced they had charged a 17-year-old male with first-degree murder in connection with Guillen Mejia's death. At the time the charges were filed, the teen was already being held at the Fairfax County Juvenile Detention Center on an unrelated matter. Due to his age, his identity was not publicly released.
Further investigation into the brutal slaying uncovered a larger, more sinister plot orchestrated by the violent transnational criminal gang, MS-13. Guillen Mejia's murder was not an isolated incident but one of several killings carried out by the gang's 'Uniones Locos Salvatrucha' clique, which operated in the Reston area. Prosecutors revealed that Guillen Mejia was targeted as he and his friends were drinking in a wooded area the gang considered its territory. The attack was part of the gang's efforts to patrol and assert dominance over their claimed turf.
The mastermind behind this wave of violence was identified as Elmer de Jesus Alas Candray, a high-ranking leader within the local MS-13 cell. In a federal trial, testimony from cooperating co-defendants painted a chilling picture of the night of Guillen Mejia's murder. One former gang member testified that the plan was to attack the entire group, but Alas Candray initiated the violence by shooting Guillen Mejia with a 9mm handgun. Following the initial shots, other gang members also opened fire and attacked the victim with machetes.
In October 2024, a federal jury in Alexandria convicted Elmer de Jesus Alas Candray on 14 counts, including the murder of Jose Lorenzo Guillen Mejia and five other individuals between 2018 and 2022. The trial highlighted the extreme violence and trivial motives behind the killings, which were often aimed at punishing perceived disrespect or consolidating the gang's power. Five of his co-defendants pleaded guilty and testified against him. In January 2025, Alas Candray was sentenced to a mandatory life in prison for his role in the string of brutal murders that had terrorized the Northern Virginia community.
