Federal and local law enforcement agencies arrested 18 people and seized more than $10 million worth of fentanyl Wednesday in a sweeping drug enforcement operation targeting an open-air narcotics market at MacArthur Park in Los Angeles.
The raid, spearheaded by the Drug Enforcement Administration in coordination with the Los Angeles Police Department, focused primarily on MacArthur Park but also encompassed arrests in Calabasas, San Gabriel and South Los Angeles, involving more than 200 DEA personnel and approximately 100 LAPD officers.
Dubbed “Operation Free MacArthur Park,” the effort resulted in a federal criminal complaint filed against 25 defendants on charges of narcotics distribution and possession, with seven individuals remaining at large and considered fugitives.
“Today, we begin reclaiming MacArthur Park from criminals and drug addicts to return this public space to the citizens of Los Angeles,” First Assistant United States Attorney Bill Essayli said in a statement. “Together with our federal and local law enforcement partners, we are executing multiple arrest and search warrants targeting those who are distributing drugs in and around the park.”
Over a nearly six-week span beginning in March, investigators tracked 27 separate drug deals for fentanyl and methamphetamine in and around the park. Mr. Essayli said authorities believe the drugs originated from the Sinaloa cartel.
Prosecutors identified Mallaly Moreno-Lopez, 31, and her boyfriend, Jackson Tarfur, 28, both of the Westmont area of South Los Angeles, as among the main suppliers of fentanyl and methamphetamine distributed in the Alvarado Corridor and MacArthur Park area, acting on behalf of the 18th Street Gang. The two allegedly hand-delivered narcotics to the corridor, where drugs were stashed in storefronts before reaching street-level dealers.
Authorities also allege Yolanda Iriarte-Avila, 40, of Calabasas, served as a methamphetamine supplier to the couple, and Jesus Morales-Landel, 33, worked as a street-level dealer in the MacArthur Park area. Law enforcement seized approximately 40 pounds of fentanyl from Ms. Iriarte-Avila’s Calabasas residence alone.
The four named defendants face serious federal drug trafficking charges and potential decades in prison if convicted; the remaining defendants face up to 10 years. Precise mandatory minimums for each defendant were not available in public filings at press time.
Officials linked the operation to a broader crackdown on the 18th Street Gang, which authorities say claims the northern side of MacArthur Park as its territory. The U.S. Attorney’s Office also stressed the operation was not an immigration enforcement action.
Anthony Chrysanthis, special agent in charge for the DEA’s Los Angeles Field Division, said the operation aimed to do more than make arrests.
“Today’s operation is only one step, taken by a handful of agencies working hard to alleviate the anguish and sense of hopelessness burdening MacArthur Park, local businesses, and the surrounding neighborhood,” Mr. Chrysanthis said. “While this is a drug enforcement operation, it is also an effort to restore safety and wellness, and to return MacArthur Park back to the community.”
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