Mariposa, The Wonder Woman Of MS-13 – A Salvadoran Wetback Makes The American Bigtime

Mariposa Valdez was born and raised in a small village outside of St. Miguel, El Salvador, a town best known for its enchiladas and for Roberto Edgerton, the leader of the right wing death squad which was as feared as Sevak, Stasi, and the Tonton Macoute combined.  El Terror, as it was known, was the Salvadoran army’s avant garde, invading suspected rebel villages and, like White Wolf, the Comanche chieftain of the Great Plains, eviscerated, disemboweled, raped, and mutilated men, women, and children to send an unmistakable lesson to the country’s enemies.

That was a long time ago, but the legacy of the civil war remained.  Soldiers and rebels alike who knew nothing but killing, kept their weapons after the truce, assembled into gangs which ruled the country with violence and brutality.  Mara Salvatrucha, the country’s most famous gang amassed millions through canny Mafia-like intimidation of the judiciary, police, and the army, and quickly became a regional power. 

They were a destabilizing force in neighboring Guatemala and Honduras, formed alliances with Indian and mestizo gangs there, and threatened the weak and tentative governments of both countries before extending their reach to the United States.

Mariposa was a young girl at the time of the civil war, but remembered Don Roberto and his men who ruled San Miguel, walked openly in the streets, and who provided the citizenry with cash, tortillas, and the promise of a better world

The tattooed, muscled men of MS-13 found San Miguel a congenial place – photographs of the leader of El Terror were on the walls of most homes – a homegrown hero who never forgot his people – and the people of the town were just as welcoming to the sons of the movement as they had been to El Terror itself.

 

Mariposa was a product of that lucky, marvelous mix of Spanish and indigenous genes which when combined in the right configuration produced dark haired beauties. Taller than most young girls her age, possessed of a natural poise and stature and precocious sexual appeal, Mariposa caught the eye of all the men of her community, especially the MS-13 commanders and their lieutenants who lived in mansions high on the hills above the town and ate at La Maravilla, the tipica restaurant where she waited tables.

It wasn’t long before she accepted the generous offer of El Comandante, Adalberto Sanchez, to accompany him to the capital for a long weekend.  Although begun as a commercial affair – Mariposa was treated and paid well – the affair turned into something much more, and the young beauty became the big man’s consort, a constant companion, confidante, and passionate lover.

When the man invited her to go with him to El Norte, she readily agreed, anxious to enjoy the wonders of America.  El Comandante was received like a head of state, clandestinely of course, since MS-13, now designated as a terrorist organization and hotly pursued by the new Trump government, could not operate as openly as before.

Mariposa’s love for Berto grew with every accolade, every tribute, and every respectful greeting.  Never before had she imagined herself with such a man, an Adonis of the barrio, a mensch, a hero.

Mariposa was not just a pretty face, but a determined, ambitious young woman who understood that her intimacy with El Comandante would stand her in good stead with the militant wing of the organization, Adalberto’s praetorian, republican guard, the most feared cadre of MS-13 – a group whose unalloyed loyalty and unremittingly violent reputation were irresistible.

Her dalliance with them, at first suspected by Adalberto who soon realized her motivational importance, became more in tune with their brief.  She showed her mettle early on, increased her competency on the firing range, and accompanied armed factions on raids of banks, insurance companies, and wealthy landowners. She killed with the best, was a fearless combatant in gun battles with the federales and soon earned her stripes as a trusted member of MS-13. 

As feared operative and lover of El Comandante, Mariposa became the face of the organization.  A Che Guevara-style poster of her appeared everywhere in the capital, and residents hoped to get a glimpse of her as she slipped out of the ‘technicals’, the retrofitted Dodge Ram trucks, armored, armed, and supercharged conveyances of the captains.

In Los Angeles she became well-known to ICE, the border patrol, and Homeland Security as well as the local police, and was one of the FBI’s most wanted; but eluded identification and capture and engineered some of the most audacious robberies in California’s history.  She ruled over a Fentanyl empire worth hundreds of millions, negotiated successful with her Obrador and Juarez cartel counterparts across the border, and through canny investments offshore, became a wealthy woman.

‘Not bad for a wetback, eh Berto?’, she liked saying to El Comandante whose love for her only increased with her power; but power being the divisive, corrupting influence it has always been, the couple split.  Mariposa’s factions were simply more powerful, and with the separation, she carried with her many of Adalberto’s finest.  She now was the most influential feared leader of Mara Salvatrucha.

Many were surprised that a woman could have risen to such prominence in such a hardened macho culture, but she worked both sides of the street.  A devilishly alluring woman, a beautiful Delilah, a woman who understood men and could manipulate ego, desire, and male fragility like a puppeteer; but a woman with an innately masculine aggressiveness and murderous intent, she was indomitable.

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‘I love America’, Mariposa was often heard saying but America loved her more, for she was the very image of success – a woman who rose to power and authority in a man’s world; one who was as easily at ease with guns as with roses; a canny businesswoman, a feared investor and organizational genius; but woman at heart, a stunning beauty of international fame.

She was the Bonnie Parker of Latin America – a gun moll, a famous woman of the people, feared and admired, a local hero, a genius – but she was much more.  Mariposa didn’t just rob banks, she owned them.  She didn’t just intimidate judges, she owned them.  She was a one-woman Armageddon, a fierce, unbowed, ferocious figure that had crossed the Rio Grande and made a fortune. 

‘Local girl makes good’, said the San Miguel Gazeta del Pueblo, and when she finally returned home, she was welcomed with open arms.  She was a local girl who had made good on both sides of the river, and more power to her.