The Trump administration renewed a $5 million reward on Monday for information leading to the arrest and conviction of Yulan Adonay Archaga Carías, the alleged MS-13 leader in Honduras.
Archaga Carías, known by the alias “Porky,” orchestrates the gang’s brutal operations—including drug trafficking, money laundering, murder, and kidnappings—according to the State Department.
First offered in 2023 under the Transnational Organized Crime Rewards Program, the reward is now being spotlighted once again as part of the administration’s intensified push against MS-13. Earlier this year, President Trump officially designated the gang a Foreign Terrorist Organization.
Archaga Carías is currently on the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list.
“This terrorist leader can no longer be allowed to live free as MS-13’s evil devastates communities in America and throughout the western hemisphere,” Attorney General Pam Bondi said. “If you can contribute information leading to his arrest – come forward now.”
Cracking down on the gang’s leadership remains one of the Trump administration’s top objectives. FBI Director Kash Patel reaffirmed this commitment Monday, vowing to bring Archaga Carías to justice.
“Dismantling and ultimately eliminating MS-13 continues to be one of the FBI’s highest priorities, and we’re not stopping until that mission is complete,” Patel said. “Alongside our dedicated law enforcement partners, the FBI will find Archaga Carías — a terrorist whose reign of terror at the helm of MS-13 is coming to an end.”
The Honduran fugitive, already listed among the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted, is also linked to smuggling significant quantities of cocaine into the U.S., according to the State Department.
DEA Acting Administrator Derek Maltz warned that anyone shielding Archaga Carías will face consequences.
“With MS-13 now officially designated as a Foreign Terrorist Organization, the rules have changed — and so has the mission,” Maltz said. “Archaga Carías isn’t just a fugitive — he’s a foreign terrorist waging war on innocent Americans through murder, trafficking, and terror.”
“Let me be clear: under this Administration, we will dismantle MS-13 piece by piece — and anyone protecting him will fall with him. A $5 million reward is on the table. Turn him in. End this threat.”
Archaga Carías, 43, was charged in a 2021 superseding indictment out of the Southern District of New York with federal racketeering, narcotics trafficking, and firearms offenses.
Out of the five MS-13 leaders named in the New York indictment—all Honduran nationals—only one is currently in U.S. custody.
“MS-13 remains one of the most dangerous criminal organizations in the world, and the recent designation of MS-13 as a Foreign Terrorist Organization underscores this reality,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Matthew Podolsky. “This Office, working closely with our law enforcement partners, will continue to investigate, prosecute and track down MS-13’s leadership, no matter where in the world they may be hiding.”
Federal prosecutors allege that Archaga Carías and his network provided protection to drug trafficking organizations (DTOs) that transported multi-ton cocaine shipments through Honduras bound for the U.S.
Archaga Carías allegedly contracted MS-13 members as sicarios—hired assassins—for DTOs in exchange for payment. DOJ officials say MS-13 carried out numerous contract killings for these groups.
“Archaga Carías and MS-13 also supplied DTOs with firearms, including machineguns, that were received from El Salvador, Nicaragua, and elsewhere,” the Justice Department stated.
“Archaga Carías also ordered multiple murders of rival gang members and drug trafficking competitors in Honduras, as well as other members of MS-13 whom he believed had been disloyal.”
If convicted, Archaga Carías faces a maximum sentence of life imprisonment and a mandatory minimum of 40 years.
