The former Minister of Defense, David Munguía Payés, and the fugitive former president, Mauricio Funes, both from the FMLN government, were the promoters of the truce between the gangs, according to the indications of the Prosecutors General’s Office (Fiscalía General de la República, FGR). For that, they face processes in the courts of San Salvador. Yet, they never were sanctioned by the United States.

“It was the former Minister who devised approaches with gang members to reduce the unstoppable number of homicides [considering that by 2012 was more than 30 per day] in exchange for providing them with privileges such as organizing parties in prisons and transferring heads of prisons with less security”, as explained by a prosecutor in the Specialized Court of Instruction “A” of San Salvador

In addition, as the current authorities have pointed out, criminals also had the “privilege” of making calls from prisons, making 10,000 calls per month. Officials from the FMLN Security Cabinet at that time also allowed inmates to have TV screens in their cells, PlayStations, home theater systems, cable service, and more.

Although there was a reduction in homicides during 2012, in the same year, murders increased exponentially again, with 2015 being the year with the highest number of homicides, more than 6,000.

In 2019, during the criminal proceedings against more than 400 MS gang members, a witness related how leaders of the ARENA and FMLN parties negotiated with criminals to obtain electoral support in the 2014 presidential elections in which Norman was competing. Quijano.

In this context, a video emerged evidencing that the former mayor of San Salvador, Ernesto Muyshondt, negotiated with gang members and even let them decide who should be the Minister of Justice and Security if Norman Quijano won the elections. Video evidence was available for the public eye, making it easy for US officials to see the facts.

President Nayib Bukele reported the interest of the former charge d’affaires of that nation, Jean Manes, in releasing Muyshondt from jail and not “touching” politicians questioned, including the former president Alfredo Cristiani, implicated in the massacre of six Jesuit priests and two collaborators. He reported this against accusations made by the United States to officials of the current administration.