The wrong tattoo can get you stopped by police. But artists in El Salvador say more people want their ink

Certain tattoos associated with street gangs can get you stopped by police in El Salvador. But artists there say now more people want their ink.

Gang tattoos were once a vital currency in El Salvador, just a few years ago when it was known as the “murder capital of the world.” Some designs confirmed membership of MS-13 or 18th Street —ultra-violent street organizations that ruled with machetes and intimidation — and commemorated slain gang members while issuing warnings to the living. Now, under the strict rule of President Nayib Bukele, suspected gang tattoos can be used as evidence of membership in an illegal organization, and lead to detention. Intelligence on those tattoos has also been shared by El Salvador with European countries dealing with gangs, and with the United States, where on Monday Bukele is set for a White House meeting with President Donald Trump. Tattoos have been used as evidence to deport people from the US and while there are accusations the designs have been misread, El Salvador’s Security and Justice Minister Gustavo Villatoro said he could identify very specific meanings. “We learn how to understand, how to give interpretation to each tattoo,” Villatoro said in an exclusive interview with CNN. Gangs have been a personal project for him in his work for 20 years. He even has a book with photographs and analysis of hundreds of different markings. “We know the importance for them to identify their members by the tattoos. If you are not a member, you are not able to use any tattoo.” Inside the Cecot supermax prison, its director Belarmino García told CNN that tattoos had been a key way to identify suspects.