Two men allegedly associated with the notorious criminal organization MS-13 are facing charges after police say they trafficked and sexually exploited a victim throughout the Greater Toronto Area. In November 2025, police launched Project Mermaid after one of the suspects—who was serving a “lengthy sentence” at a Kingston, Ont., prison at the time—allegedly used an unauthorized cellphone to communicate with the victim and his co-accused. “Investigators allege the two men used intimidation, manipulation, and threats of violence to control the (female) victim while financially benefiting from her exploitation,” police said in a news release issued Wednesday. Speaking to CTV News Toronto, Det. Sgt. Bob Hackenbrook couldn’t say how exactly Gutierrez accessed a cellphone while imprisoned but said it was used in at least two prison facilities. With the assistance of Ontario Provincial Police and the Correctional Service of Canada, officers executed four search warrants in the Mississauga and Collingwood areas in connection with the investigation. As a result, 42-year-old Mississauga resident Marcos Ariel Marinoni and 30-year-old Toronto resident Carlos Gutierrez were both charged with trafficking in persons, receiving benefit resulting from trafficking in persons and advertising sexual services, along with several other charges. Imprisoned suspect was serving 14-year sentence for attempted murder A spokesperson for Peel police confirmed to CTV News Toronto that Gutierrez is currently serving a 14-year sentence for attempted murder. Gutierrez was one of three suspects charged after a 65-year-old dog walker was shot at 13 times in February 2023 in a case of mistaken identity. Police said at the time that the suspects were hired by an organized crime group to kill a man in Schomberg, Ont. Gutierrez pleaded guilty to attempted murder in connection with that investigation. Both Gutierrez and Marinoni remain in police custody. Investigators believe there may be additional victims who have not yet come forward. “We’re asking if anyone in the community has been victimized by these individuals, or knows these individuals, to please contact Peel Regional Police,” Hackenbrook said. MS-13, or La Mara Salvatrucha, was listed as a terrorist organization by the Canadian government in 2025.
