The organisation has been involved in drug trafficking, attempted murder, robberies, shootings, stabbings and witness intimidation, a statement from the Massachusetts district attorney’s office said.

Federal, state and local officers arrested dozens of members and associates and executed 31 search warrants at 24 locations on Thursday morning, the statement said.

The leader of the group’s Eastern Region branch, 40-year-old Michael Cecchetelli – also known as “King Merlin” – could face up to 20 years in prison.

The Latin Kings, which originated in the 1960s in Chicago to support poor members of the Hispanic community, run their organisation based on a sophisticated internal communication system, according to the FBI.

Members follow a national manifesto and an internal judiciary system, and the group’s hierarchy adheres to a strict structure.

The gang counts thousands of members throughout the US, with 11 “chapters” operating in Massachusetts alone, according to the state’s US Attorney Andrew Lelling.

Also charged Thursday was Esther Ortiz, who is also known as “Queen India” and the “East Coast Crown Council chairwoman,” and who has acknowledged her gang affiliation on Facebook, according to the FBI agent in charge of the investigation.

Not everyone who was charged was arrested: three of the 62 were still at large on Thursday afternoon, according to the prosecutor’s office.