Purported gang members charged in social media influencer’s killing

July 20, 2026 | 11:05 AM

Stock image of police tape. (Ajax9/Getty Images)

(NEW YORK) — A dozen purported members of the Bad Boys 7, a set of the Trinitarios, were indicted Monday on racketeering conspiracy charges that accused them of five murders, including the carjacking death last August of Ariela La Langosta, a nightlife influencer with more than half a million followers on Instagram.

She was shot multiple times and found dead in her car on the Cross County Parkway in Mount Vernon.

La Langosta, 33, whose real name was Ariela Mejia-Polanco, was a mother of two.

Her family said she left her job at Ikon New York around 4:30 that Sunday morning. The Westchester County Police Department said she was found deceased a few hours later, about 8 a.m., behind the wheel of her car on the eastbound Cross County Parkway near the Broad Street exit in Mount Vernon.

Five people killed in Northern Michigan, officials say; suspect found dead

By CNN
August 14, 2026 | 9:06 PM

Click here for updates on this story MISSAUKEE COUNTY, Michigan (WWJ) -- Authorities are investigating the killings of five people Friday in rural Northern Michigan, officials said. The suspect in the case was also found dead.In a social media post, state police said that at about 11:40 a.m. local time, troopers were called to a shooting at a home in Lake Township in Missaukee County. They arrived to find three people dead and a fourth person in critical condition. The suspect, identified as 39-year-old Chad Hickman, had fled the scene before troopers arrived, prompting a manhunt, state police said. His vehicle was eventually spotted near a wooded area in nearby Caldwell Township. Authorities searched the wooded area and found Hickman and a fourth victim dead, state police said. A fifth victim was also found dead at a separate home in Missaukee County believed to be linked to the same case, state police said.There was no word on a motive. The names and ages of the victims were not immediately released. The manner of death for all five victims was also not provided, although state police described it as a "multi-homicide investigation.""This situation is heartbreaking for the community and challenging for the investigators involved," said Michigan State Police Lt. Ashley Miller in a statement. "We remain committed to conducting a thorough investigation and will provide updates as new information becomes available." Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

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